The Chaos Descent
by Arbmaster 16
Summary: So many questions and so few answers. Shadow finds himself lost in a land and time period long before he was ever created. The 18th century is a brutal place and Shadow has to endure it without any memory of who he was prior to his awakening here. Can Shadow find his way? Or will his memories and purpose forever elude him?
1. If Only You Knew

**Welcome all, welcome! I finally finished the rewrite to this!**

**To those who read this before, you likely know it as _'What Doesn't Kill You...'_. The reason for the name change is simply because the original name didn't work for this new version of the story. It is vastly different from what it used to be, so hopefully you will all enjoy it.**

**To at least try and make up for the many months that this story was on hiatus, I will upload the first seven chapters today! This one here is easily the shortest, but it sets things in motion for the others to follow. After this one is up, the others will follow one at a time until the first seven are up. From then on until the end, it will be weekly uploads; every Saturday.**

**If you haven't played 'Amnesia: The Dark Descent', I highly recommend it if you're into tension horror games. I love it... obviously. If you have played it, then you will recognise the environments I describe a bit easier, other than that, the story in this is different to the one in the game, so if you haven't played it, no big deal. :)**

**I think that covers everything for now. I won't put a 'pre-chapter note' at the end of the next six, just because there's not really any point. I've told you everything that I've needed to here.**

**Fun Fact: Just like my other 'Amnesia: The Dark Descent' story, I played the game alongside writing. This was to get details on the surroundings, the atmosphere and how I was feeling a certain points. I also love the game in general, but that didn't take away from how terrifying it was! :D**

**So, with that, I shall check the next chapter and upload it shortly! I hope you all enjoy _'The Chaos Descent'_ and I will see you in Chapter 8!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

_**Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Amnesia: The Dark Descent or Sonic the Hedgehog. All characters and locations belong to their respective owners.**_

* * *

_*Pitter, patter, pitter, patter, pitter, patter, pitter, patter.*_

Black, furry ears twitched at the sound of rain falling from the heavens. Roars of thunder erupted from the sky as the storm outside raged on. As seconds passed, his body began to return to reality with his fingers being the first to feel the carpet beneath him. His eyelids revealed his bright, red orbs which were quick to study his surroundings. Once his strength returned, his arms lifted him from the cold, stone floor and onto his still unsteady legs.

"_Where am I?"_ He thought as he noticed the stone walls and red curtains. A wooden door was next to him, which he went through, hoping that another soul would be there. It was empty of life, with only a wooden table and chair sitting tidily in the middle. A lit candle was on the top. Next to it, was a cylindrical item that he was unfamiliar with. He left it alone for now and returned to the hallway to have a look around. Once at the end, he came to an entrance way with an enormous door at the end.

"_Must be the way out."_ He walked calmly to the door, but as he approached, a sudden darkness came over him. It was a feeling of pure dread and the mammal felt the need to collapse and escape the reality once more. It lasted for a few seconds before passing. His breathing had quickened and he looked back at the door not knowing what it was. With one final exhale, he got back to his feet and made it to the door, but as he tried to open it, a roar echoed. It definitely wasn't thunder, it was vastly different; deeper and more intimidating as the structure around him trembled just as he did. He jumped back in fright, obviously not expecting the response he got. A shiver went up his spine at an indescribable noise that accompanied it.

"_Wha-what was that?!"_ He thought to himself, but with no answer, he tried the door again. It was locked, with no noise to halt his actions this time.

"Dammit." He whispered before noticing a different corridor to the right of him. With no hesitation, he walked down it until a gust of wind stopped him in his tracks. A door nearby blew open. He shook himself from his frightened thoughts and went into the now open room.

He instantly felt the warmth of the fire that was burning at the far end. There were several chairs surrounding a table that had a green bottle and another strange, cylindrical object. He shook his head in disapproval at the bottle.

"_Alcohol."_ He thought. _"What a disgusting substance."_ Without touching anything, he swiftly left. Once back in the corridor, he noticed several paintings on the walls and two wardrobes randomly on either side of him. He felt that they weren't worth his time and ignored them both. Another wooden door was at the end, which revealed some stone stairs. Once he reached the top, footsteps could be heard, as if someone else was running.

"Who's there?" He asked in a stern voice. Whoever was messing with him was certainly going to pay for it. His walking pace quickened as he continued left and right down the winding corridor, until the same feeling of dread overcame him. "Ah!" He cried, as he clutched his head. It wasn't physically hurting him, but the feeling alone made him want to slice his own throat. "Stop!" He growled and the feeling suddenly subsided. His body remained on the floor until he was certain the feeling had passed before swiftly getting to his feet. His heart was racing, while his breathing matched it. Once he looked around him, he quickly noticed that no one was there.

"Coward." He mumbled to himself before walking again. He came to another room, this one was larger, but instead of appreciating the knocked over wardrobe or red fabric lining the walls, his attention was diverted to a door at the end, which slowly opened on its own.

The male raised a brow and his mouth opened ever so slightly. His body wouldn't move for fear of attracting attention but… what attention? Again, he shook himself out of it and walked cautiously towards the door, which led into an empty room with more paintings. As soon as he walked in, a sudden violent gust of wind blew out every single candle in the room. Darkness surrounded him as he was once again startled by the sudden turn of events. Not wanting to stay and admire the vast collection of art, he went down some more stone steps that were opposite and kept going until he reached a heavy, red door, which led to the Old Archives.

* * *

He was greeted by more of the same stone brick as he entered and began to walk through. Everything seemed so dull and grey; it puzzled him for unknown reasons. The wind continued to plague him as it blew out the nearby torches and blew open another door.

"What is going on?" He whispered angrily, before going into the room on his right. With nothing but basic, wooden bookshelves and more cylinders, he was about to leave when suddenly dozens of cockroaches appeared from nowhere on the floor and began to crawl up his black, white and red shoes. "Ugh!" He yelled in disgust as he shook them off and went back up the steps. He slammed the door behind him and rubbed his head. He had no idea what was going on and he was getting sick and tired of it.

"I need to find the exit. That is all." His voice whispered with a slight tremble. He steadied his breathing before continuing into another room. While he wouldn't admit it, he could feel his hands shaking and his head pounding.

As he entered, he saw another doorway to the right, but upon heading for it, a tornado surrounded him, immediately halting his path. He glanced around quickly to see what was causing it, but a crash on the ground caught his attention. The whirlwind eased off, still leaving him confused, but with everything back to normal, he investigated the source of the noise.

A wooden table nearby had an old lantern that had been blown off. The male knelt down and picked it up. He studied it, trying to figure out how it worked. With the place obviously having no electricity, he knew it would be useful, in case the wind decided to startle him again. It didn't take long to figure it out, so he took it with him into a small, but very dark corridor.

One way was blocked off by a rock slide, leaving only one other way to go. Another wooden door led to what appeared to be a small library with many bookshelves that had books and scrolls upon them. After a few steps in, everything around him began to shake. He grabbed onto the nearest bookshelf and held on, hoping it would pass quickly. Thankfully, it did and he continued through the room and out through another door with many various thoughts fighting to be heard.

The next room was very dark, with only a single candle upon a desk that was lit. He approached it and found a pot of oil, which he now knew was for the lantern, and a written note. It read:

'_I wish I could ask how much you remember, but I'm not sure if there's anything left of you. You are a black hedgehog with red markings, am I right? Then this note is for you._

_Don't be afraid, Shadow. I can't tell you why, but know this, you chose to forget. The events prior to this are far too horrible for me to tell you. Your mind will be safer without the incident lurking in your thoughts._

_You have forgotten for a reason and perhaps that will allow you to put things right, Chaos willing._

_I hope with everything I still have that the name Espio the Chameleon invokes some kind of emotion in you. If so, then there may still be a chance._

_You need to find him. That is your priority. He is struggling with the same demons that you don't remember and he needs you, now more than ever. This may sound crazy, but you need to save him from himself and only you can do that._

_One last thing. Something is after you, something which even you, the Ultimate Lifeform cannot escape or fight. I can only describe it as a living nightmare. It will appear only to you with a cry that is nothing short of horrific. Your only option is to run and keep running no matter what._

_You need to get going, there is little time. Save yourself and save Espio._

_Your former self,_

_Shadow.'_

He took a look at himself only to notice the black fur and red markings that the note described. His shoes, upon further inspection, seemed different, as if not of this world. He felt the back of his head. His fingers ran over the upturned quills; definitely a hedgehog. It was indeed for him, but what was this incident? Who is Espio and why is he in danger… from himself?

"I… am Shadow?" He pondered as he thought more about the many questions he had. With no other options, he took the note with him and searched for a way out. Using his lantern, he came across a lever upon one of the walls, which opened up a secret entrance to another heavy door; this time leading to the Entrance Hall.


	2. What Lies Within

The door creaked closed behind him and he continued up a few more stone steps into a large hall.

Collapsed pillars and debris lay everywhere, he could only assume that this was caused by the earthquake he had experienced earlier. Everything was still dull and lacking of life. Just like his current situation, it all looked the same. Once in the centre, a sudden white light took over his vision and voices occupied his hearing.

* * *

"_You be sure to stay safe." He heard himself say._

"_Would you relax?" A younger voice replied. "I can take care of myself." He said with a chuckle._

"_I know, but Espio would kill me if you got into any trouble."_

"_I'll behave, I swear. I'll be back later." He heard footsteps as the other ran and a door opened. "Bye, uncle Shadow!"_

"_Bye Charmy." It quickly closed again._

* * *

"What the…" Shadow said to himself as he returned to the coldness of his current surroundings. "Who's Charmy? My nephew or something?" He wondered as he addressed him as 'uncle'.

The hedgehog continued to walk with no other leads and saw another exit to his left. He was a little more hesitant this time, remembering his previous experience. With his gloved hand, he slowly reached for the handle of the large door, but just as he had feared, the disturbing cry boomed throughout the halls. The key difference this time was the materialisation of a mysterious red, flesh-like matter.

"What the fuck?!" He shouted out of frustration and fright. His hand touched it only to be greeted by the slime that trickled onto his glove. His body shuddered and he was quick to shake it off. Knowing that this exit was now blocked, he realised that he would either have to find another way of escape or search for this 'Espio' that the note had mentioned.

He headed back the way he came until he noticed a chest in the corner. It contained a pot of oil and another cylinder-shaped object. This time, he took it with him to see if he could figure out its purpose. Once back in the main entrance hall, he saw three possible paths. One opposite, which led downwards, some more stairs to his left which went up and a corridor to his left that led to two doors. Shadow thought that going down wouldn't get him anywhere, so he ruled that option out for now and decided that going up could wield some results. The mammal walked up the steps until he was startled by a woman's scream from the corridor.

"No! Get away from me!" She shouted. Shadow had no idea who it could've been, but perhaps whoever it was may have also been stuck here and could therefore help him to get out. He ran back down and into the corridor. Being led by instinct, he approached the left door first only to find that it was locked.

"Damn!" He shouted in anger as he ran to the other door, leading to the Laboratory.

* * *

As soon as he slammed the door shut, he felt the atmosphere instantly change. It was dark and uncomfortably quiet. Only his own pounding heart could be heard along with his unsteady breathing. With caution, he continued down some creaky, wooden steps. The cry returned, it sounded distant this time, but it still sent a chill through his body. His bright, red eyes glared at the environment around him as he went deeper. A path to his right was blocked by another rock slide, which forced him to go left.

"It's… cold. It's so cold." Shadow said to himself. His fur should have worked wonders against the low temperatures, but this seemed different. It felt as if he was exposed, vulnerable to the elements, as if he was naked entirely. It cut through him like paper and he was forced to endure it.

After a few more steps, he came into a small room that was dimly lit by a few candles. A grate in the centre caught his attention as the reflections from water shone against it. Shadow approached and peered over to see what was down there only to be startled by a garbled cry that came from beneath the surface. It thrashed a little before moving off. Widened eyes continued to gaze upon the disturbed water for a few more moments, just to make sure that it had really gone. Once the waves had settled, he looked around for anything useful.

He came across a table to his right that had some strange, scientific equipment on it. A few glass bottles and some burners underneath each of them. There was also another note next to it. This one wasn't directly for him, but it did provide some information. It explained how no chimney in the lab has caused the fumes from recent experiments to contaminate other 'less stable' chemicals. They were all moved to the Wine Cellar. Shadow could only assume that the locked door nearby led to it, but he would need a key. The chemicals it housed perhaps could be useful to him. He searched the other end of the room only to be engulfed in another white light.

* * *

"_There should be more Cuprite… let me see… and one part Aqua Fortis."_

* * *

It was short and the voice he heard wasn't one that he recognised. It was male and… loud, even obnoxious and Shadow felt it irritate him, but not enough for him to react.

"_This is getting weird."_ Shadow thought, before looking through a desk. It had a chemistry pot, which would be useful for carrying these chemicals, and another note. In short, it explained how four chemicals could create a powerful acid, something which Shadow saw as a potential weapon if he should run into anyone hostile, despite having no idea if anyone else was around.

"_Better to be safe than sorry."_ He looked through the drawers of the desk only to find another cylinder thing. Out of frustration, he messed with it until a candle on the desk suddenly lit. Shadow gave a smug grin before looking through the final compartment of the desk. It housed yet another cylindrical object, but this one was different. As soon as he touched it, his vision was blinded by white and he could hear his own voice talking.

* * *

"_My only hope now is you. I would give anything, sacrifice everything… can you not see that? If only you knew of my sorrow. We could share it and allow our worlds to crush us."_

* * *

Shadow stumbled back, nearly falling backwards onto the ground. His breathing had quickened again. It was his voice without a doubt, but what was he talking about? His head shook.

"_This has to be a dream…"_ He thought. _"…or some kind of nightmare."_ With his lantern still lit, he decided that now was the best time to leave. His pace had sped up until he had left through the door he had come in at.

* * *

"There was no woman in there, no one even." Shadow thought aloud as he went back up the stairs where he had heard the scream. A landing led to two more doors. One was at the bottom of some stairs to his right, but it was boarded up, meaning that he had to go forwards into the Archives.

* * *

As soon as he entered, something felt… wrong.

*Growl*

After a single step, a strange, unfamiliar growl came from a room to his right that already had its door knocked off the hinges. With no other weapons, Shadow clenched his fists and with a deep breath, he jumped around to see… that nothing was there. He sighed in relief and looked around. The only item of interest was a note that lay on a table in the centre.

'_Today, Tails informed me about an odd energy signature that was coming from underneath Eggman's most recently destroyed base. He was certain that it was a Chaos Emerald and insisted that I go with him. I would never turn down an offer like that; the sound of adventure is just hypnotic to me. Cream would also tag along, which I was happy about. She has grown a lot in the past few years, yet I feel she has matured more than I have. That bothers me to some extent, but hey, being me is more fun!_

_I asked Tails about the emerald again and he told me that Eggman must have left it there in his haste to escape. That was understandable and now it was ours for the taking._

_We leave tomorrow. I don't see myself sleeping tonight, but I guess I'd better try._

_Best not tell Dad or uncle Shadow… they'd kill me if they knew what I was doing.'_

Shadow thought hard about the note he had just read. Who was Tails? Who was Cream? Judging by how Cream was described, his best guess was that they were friends with this 'Charmy' character, who he assumed had written the note and who he still assumed was his nephew. Placing the note with the others, he moved into the room opposite. It was far darker, to the point where he required the aid of his lantern to banish it, but as he tried to turn it on, it simply fizzled and remained unlit. After some investigation, he figured out that it was out of oil and used the two pots of oil he had to refill the lantern about half way.

Now with light, Shadow looked through another desk to find another cylinder. Not knowing what the proper name for them was, he simply decided to call them 'lighters' seeing as that was what they did. He quickly skimmed the few bookshelves that were in the room to find another note.

'_I am sick and tired of that pesky hedgehog ruining everything I set out to do! This time shall be different! I will come up with something that will really strike fear into them and this time, none of them will know what is coming!"_

The hedgehog raised a brow at this. Was it talking about him? He shrugged it off as nothing major and continued to look around. The Archives were certainly fancier than the environments he was surrounded by previously. The walls and floors were made of a polished wood as were the furnishings, even if they were a little dusty. It was mostly tidy, except for the odd broken door or out of place book. The only inconvenience was the lack of lit torches. Its small corridors had very few windows making it incredibly dark and forcing Shadow to use his lantern more often; not good when his oil supply was very limited.

*Groan*

He went through another pair of doors only to stop in his tracks when an alien groan was heard from somewhere else in the Archives. His furred body didn't move and his ears twitched at every little noise. Hearing nothing else out of the ordinary, he decided that it was just a one off before looking through another desk to find a lighter and a note.

'_Today was the day!_

_We all made our way to Eggman's old base to see if Tails' suspicions were correct. While it was still standing, it was very unstable, which meant that we had to be very careful. Thankfully, each of us could fly making getting into the base a piece of cake. Now we had to find the Chaos Emerald. _

_We walked for about two hours before meeting in front of a large, steel door. Tails told us that without power, we would have to force it open. After a quick game of rock, paper, scissors, it was decided that I would go inside, whilst Cream and Tails opened the door._

_It was one of those doors that slid up and down to open and close, making it difficult for the other two. They could only manage a small gap, which somehow was big enough for me to crawl underneath. Once I was inside though, they couldn't hold it anymore and they were forced to drop it._

_With a large gulp, I forced myself to look around.'_

Shadow huffed at the note, deciding that it didn't reveal much about the trio. He did wonder what a Chaos Emerald was though.

A door to his right led to another horribly dark corridor. He looked around quickly in order to make the most of what oil he had. There was a door opposite, which had a sign next to it. 'Old Tomes' it read, despite it being in an unfamiliar language, Shadow could somehow translate it.

This box room seemed old and forgotten with no light and dust everywhere. His blood-coloured eyes glanced around, but as he turned away from the bookshelves against the far wall, a sudden bang caused him to nearly jump out of his fur. He swung back around and stared at the book that had somehow fallen off the shelf, creating a cloud of dust as it struck the floor.

Shadow growled at it, as if the book fell on purpose just to scare him. He scolded himself for being so jumpy, as if being frightened was wrong and unnecessary. Before he could look around, he could clearly hear a piano being played in the next room. Someone else was here and he was going to get some answers. He walked swiftly, but quietly to where the music was coming from… only to find that no one was there. The mammal looked towards both ends of the long hall that he was in and still there was nobody. A confused look was present on his face as he slowly walked back the way he came. He didn't go back to the room he was previously searching in, feeling that the room 'wasn't right' and instead, went to the one door that he hadn't been through yet. It led to the 'Local History' room, but unfortunately was locked. The hedgehog grunted at his run of luck and went back into the hall to see if there was an alternate entrance.

*Groan*

As he walked down, another alien-like noise was heard to his left; the problem was that there was a wall there.

"Huh?" Shadow whispered as he continued to walk, slowing his pace in order to remain quiet. The black hedgehog slowly peered his head around the doorway at the end to see if anything was there. Satisfied that there was no one, he went in and instantly noticed the rock slide that had caved in through one of the walls. Some of the boulders had blood on them, but this didn't bother him all that much. Thankfully, he was able to walk around the large rocks and venture around this new area. A table to his left by a window had a pot of oil upon it, which allowed Shadow to breathe a small sigh of relief. He put the oil into the lantern and continued.

There were two doors at the end, one left and one right. Shadow decided to go right first into a room labelled 'Floor Plans'. The room itself didn't look interesting, it looked bare if anything. He went in nonetheless and walked to the far window past some shelves, but froze at the sound of more piano music. Another piano was by the window where he found his most recent pot of oil and knew that there was absolutely no one nearby. Upon looking back around the door to where the piano was, again… there was no one. Shadow searched the area just to make sure and didn't know what to think.

"_Ghosts?"_ He first thought, but was quick to chuckle at the idea. _"Yeah right."_ He went back in and found a small chest at the far end with a pot of oil and two lighters, which he took with him before heading to the other door, this time labelled 'Maps'.

Just as he walked through, a loud crash shook the environment, causing Shadow to fall to his knees. It lasted for a few seconds and the hedgehog quickly got to his feet as he felt vulnerable otherwise. His body shook after the shock of the loud noise and he carefully went to see what had caused it. Back down the corridor, another rock slide had broken through and was now blocking his exit.

"This, I didn't need." He growled before storming back to the maps in frustration. To his annoyance, the only two maps in the room were of somewhere named 'Prussia' and not of the building that he was in. With no new info, he looked through another desk, finding one more lighter in a drawer and a note on top, but as he went to reach it, he suddenly felt his vision go blurry and his head begin to ache. The sensation quickly became too much and he collapsed.

* * *

_His eyes opened to blackness. Red irises looked around, not expecting to see the pleasant light blue of a very powerful gem. A voice was heard, but it was not his own._

"_I couldn't believe it! Tails was right! There it was, a Chaos Emerald! It looked so beautiful, so… mesmerising. I could stare at it forever with its infinite grace."_

_He heaved himself up off of the plain, steel floor. He wasn't sure how he passed out in the first place. He approached with some caution knowing what something like this was capable of, but his excitement quickly forwarded his steps._

_He enclosed both of his hands upon the gem and it seemed to glow brighter with his touch, before gently fading to normal. A sense of security filled him as he cupped the emerald in his hands. He felt as if no one could hurt him, he felt as if-_

"_Charmy!"_

_He could hear the name being called from the other side of the door. Tails and Cream were clearly worried. How long had he been in here? With not much time, he put the emerald in his jacket pocket and returned to the door, informing them that he was ok._

"_Mission complete." he thought._

* * *

"Ugh…" The hedgehog groaned as he moved his body. The floor boards beneath him creaked to his movement as he got up. Realising that he was still in the map room, he remembered what he had seen. It was a memory without a doubt, but it wasn't his. From the voice he had heard, he knew it was Charmy's.

"_Why was I seeing it? Is there a reason?"_ Pounding returned to his skull and he soon got the feeling that he was about to throw up; staying still seemed to calm it enough for him to continue finding a way out. He picked his lantern back up, but before turning it back on; he noticed another light coming through a crack in the wall.

Once he was close enough, he peered through to see that a few bricks were missing; making this part of the wall weaker, perhaps weak enough to break through and use as a means of escape. The hedgehog clenched his fist and slammed it into the bricks forcing them to fall apart with ease. A grin ventured slowly across his face before climbing through and being taken over by another bright light.

* * *

_He first heard footsteps and then a door open. His body suddenly felt warm and he could feel himself smiling._

"_Hey." He greeted as he felt himself sit down._

"_Greetings." Another voice replied. This one he hadn't heard yet, but it was just as deep and smooth as his own. "I'm assuming Charmy went out?" The other asked him._

"_He did, he said he would be back later. I told him not to get into trouble otherwise you would be on my back." He chuckled as did the other male._

"_You learn quickly, hedgehog." He then felt a hand stroke his cheek. The feeling was gentle and caring and he couldn't help but smile more._

"_After the first few shuriken stars, you get the idea."_

"_I've told you time and time again that those were an accident. I merely overreacted." The other told him. "I am just very protective over him."_

"_And not over me?" He joked, but he soon felt an arm wrap around his neck, whilst the other hand messed with his chest fur._

"_If anyone touched you, I'd kill them." The other whispered into his ear._

"…_I guess that's one of the reasons why I love you so much, Espio."_

* * *

Wide, crimson eyes looked around as he returned to his uncomfortable environment. He leaned against a wall for support as he realised all the new information that had been presented to him.

"Espio… is my lover?" He asked himself over and over. "Surely, I would remember something like that." His muscles couldn't move out of shock for a good few minutes. Something didn't feel right. Espio's name echoed in his mind, yet it didn't sit well with him. His fist made heavy contact with the wall out of anger, yet he couldn't understand why he was angry. "Dammit… I've got to get out of here." He told himself as he refocused on the situation. The mammal was now in a room with many books, but as he looked around, three of the books looked… off. As he went to pull it off the shelf, it caused a ticking noise and slowly began to move back into place on its own. What had he done? He approached the other two odd-looking books and did the same. Once he pulled the third, a bookshelf to his left slid open to reveal a secret room.

"_Impressive." _Shadow carefully ventured inside to immediately notice another desk, this time with a key placed on top of it. He grinned at his success and picked the key up with his gloved hand. His confidence soon was cast down however, when a bang came from the other room.

*Growl*

The hedgehog whipped his head around; it came from the previous room. With no time, Shadow decided that it was best to hide until 'whatever it was' had passed. There was a wardrobe by the door, which the hedgehog dove into and closed behind him. While he was hidden, he tried his absolute best to calm his breathing and to stop his heart from bursting out of his chest.

"What… was that?" His voice trembled as he whispered along with his bones that shook. After a few minutes of eerie silence, Shadow slowly opened the wardrobe and looked around to see that it was all clear. He got up from his crouched position and returned to the desk only to find a note in the top drawer.

'_I've got to think of something! Something different, something that will make a statement and something that even Sonic cannot stop!_

_Why is this so difficult? Perhaps I'm thinking too hard…_

_That's it! Everything up until now has been complicated weapon after complicated weapon. What if I were to take a different approach? Where they are the weapon?_

_It is nothing short of perfect!'_

"Who the hell is Sonic?" Shadow asked instantly. "Perhaps he's the hedgehog this psycho was talking about before." He assumed as he put the note away. Now that things were quiet, he looked at the key again to notice a label that said 'Wine Cellar'.

"Hmph… perhaps now I can save that woman." He peered around the door to be sure that there was nothing there and went through another door that he was sure was closed previously, whilst picking up another pot of oil from one of the lower bookshelves. Shadow again checked his surroundings before moving on through and noticed the sign next to the door. He was in the Local History room and the door, which was now open, used to be locked. Upon realisation, 'whatever it was' had smashed through the door, giving the indication that it was strong. The mammal felt a little nervous, but he forced himself through it and made his way back to the long hall with the piano in it.

Just as he entered, he caught sight of something moving to the far right of him. His head quickly turned to see a glimpse of something walking through the door out of the hall. His gaze was fixated on the now empty doorway. The lantern was turned off before sneaking towards the entrance. As he moved past the piano, the lid for the keys suddenly slammed shut on its own causing Shadow to jump back. His pulse raced. He knew for certain that he didn't touch the piano, so how could it have done that? His breathing had rapidly increased to the point where he had become a little dizzy. He eased his way past the piano, being sure to keep his distance from it before focusing back on the doorway.

Shadow remained crouched being sure that the only sound he made was his very careful steps upon the floor beneath him. Once he made it, he peeked around the corner to see that once again, the corridor was clear.

*Groan*

He moved slowly forward until another alien groan came from right behind him. Shadow froze as every bit of fur stood up on end. His body trembled as the harshest shivers tore through him like knives. His pupils tried their best to look behind him, but he would have to turn his head in order to do so. The hedgehog's neck creaked as his head turned, he was sure that this was the slowest he had ever moved. His entire body relaxed when he saw nothing there, but his mind was very aware that the noise must have come from something… but what? It was now that he realised just how much he was sweating.

"_Sweet crap."_ He thought as he wiped his head with his arm. _"This is ridiculous. Noises aren't scary; I shouldn't be in this state."_ A low grunt came from his windpipe before continuing down the corridor. The exit was to his left, but before he could make a dash towards it…

*Growl*

…a growl came from the same room with the knocked down door. At the same time, the piano in the hall began to play again. _"Get out, now!"_ He thought and gathered up his courage to make a bolt for the door. The moment the door closed, he didn't look back.


	3. Taster of Torture

The black fur of his sweaty back made contact with the door as it slammed shut behind him. His eyes closed as he looked up and his breathing was deep.

"I am NOT going back in there." He announced, but was soon alert again when a familiar cry echoed around him. His pupils stared forward as a familiar, pulsating flesh appeared before him. He raised a brow at how it could just materialise wherever it liked, but then remembered the first note he read. Was this the 'something' that was after him?

"_Pfft, it's just tissue."_ He thought. _"It can't possibly-"_ As soon as he made contact, it seemed to tear at him without so much as moving.

"AHHH!" His cries of pain sounded throughout the hall as he jumped over the flesh and fell to the ground.

"Fucking dammit!" He clutched his left forearm, but slowly lifted his glove to see a deep gash going across. His voice hissed in pain as he got up and moved back towards the stairs. The wound stung and his eyes watered, but he gritted his teeth and forced himself to cope with it. Luckily, his legs were unharmed and he was able to make it to the door of the Wine Cellar. He got the key in his now blood-stained hand and unlocked the door, allowing him entrance.

* * *

The first thing that caught his attention was the smell. His stomach churned at the musty smell of decomposing flesh. The hedgehog didn't want to think about the many possible causes and moved forward down some more wooden steps. Just before he descended, the sounds of glass bottles breaking tore through the silence. The mammal peered over the banister, but it was too dark to see anything. The only way he was going to get answers was to go where the noises were coming from. He took each step with caution, but they creaked horribly under his weight and Shadow couldn't help but think that he was attracting some kind of attention.

The urge to curse greatened at every unexplained noise. Every creak, every disembodied footstep from the floor above, every distant groan caused more anxiety to build within him, but as much as he wanted everything to silence itself, he found himself unable to talk. As if the very thought would cause him some more bad luck.

Once at the bottom of the stairs, his lantern allowed him to see five doors. Two to his right, one directly in front of him and two left. Before he could make his decision however, the white light returned.

* * *

"_MWAHAHAHAHA! Perfect! I knew they wouldn't be able to resist! Still, I wasn't expecting that little pest to get it. No matter, revel in your glory now, but soon you will be screaming with despair!"_

* * *

Once the light had faded, another confused expression was present on the mammal's face; something he seemed to be doing a lot of. This time though, he recognised it from previously. It was the same voice that was mixing the chemicals, but who was this guy?

With another quick glance, he decided for convenience sake that he would go into the door in front of him first.

It was a basic box room with barrels piled up in each corner; this may have been where the wine was kept. He gently closed the door only to notice that the small room he was in was horribly dark. He checked his oil supply to realise that it was getting low and used this opportunity to use one of the many lighters that he had in his possession. There was a wooden table with a candle on it, that Shadow lit, and a strange bottle. It certainly wasn't alcohol despite where he was and he read the label.

'Cuprite'; it was one of the chemicals that he needed and he quickly picked it up.

*Groan*

The hedgehog's ears perked up to the sound of an alien-like groan.

"_It-it followed me?!"_ His gaze slowly moved to the door. Shadow listened for any footsteps before returning to the main area. The door slowly creaked open to reveal that no one but him was there. Now came the choice of which door to go through next. The two which were previously on his right, now on his left, were the closest so he decided that would be the best path to take.

It was another small room with a few tables, one of which had been knocked over and a few boxes on a shelf. It seemed to be a small storage room. A container in the corner with a tap caught his eye and Shadow wondered if there was anything in it, hopefully not wine. A familiar substance dripped from the tap; oil. He placed the lantern underneath before turning the tap and releasing the precious liquid. It filled his lantern significantly, by more than half for sure.

"_Lucky."_ He thought before continuing to look around and finding another chemical bottle next to the table that was on its side.

'Calamine' the label said this time and Shadow picked it up. The walls suddenly began to violently shake and support beams near the door quickly caved in. The black hedgehog stood up in panic at the unexpected earthquake, but got slammed in the head as a heavy barrel fell upon him. In an instant, he was unconscious.

* * *

The bones within him trembled furiously as he lay motionless upon the icy, stone floor. Shadow gasped as he awoke with no idea at how much time had passed. The room was deathly quiet and his eyes could barely make out the silhouettes of furniture. He didn't get up and instead searched the floor with the arm he wasn't laying on to see if his lantern was near. Luckily, it hadn't travelled far and he was able to grab it and turn it back on. With its warming glow now illuminating the room, Shadow picked his body up from the ground and remembered that the doorway out was blocked. He grumbled both in frustration and pain as the blow to his head had caused a very noticeable headache. A sharp sting in his arm reminded him that he still needed some kind of first aid in order to patch up his wound caused by the tissue, but he knew he wouldn't find it sitting around.

His legs, still shaken from the impact, carried him to the door, which was blocked by two wooden support beams and several boulders of varying sizes. Using another lighter, the hedgehog lit a nearby torch, so that he could have both his hands free in order to move the debris. His body weight proved useful in assisting him when moving the boulders, despite it probably doing no good to his back. He then moved the beams, which were heavier than he had first thought. Despite this, Shadow was able to move them enough to get the door open and climb through.

His lungs let out a deep sigh of relief as he freed himself and he even felt his headache ease off a little.

Three more doors remained; one to his immediate left and two at the opposite end of the room. Left was the obvious choice, but as he approached, the stench of death got stronger, enough for the hedgehog to nearly wretch with disgust. His gloved hand, still stained by his own blood, covered his nose and mouth. It was a few more steps towards the door before Shadow was halted in his tracks. Cries of agony came from the other side and the sound of someone smashing on the door caused the hedgehog to jump back. His breathing was now inconsistent and his headache quickly returned. The mammal's furred body would not move until he was certain that the commotion had died down. Shadow approached the door again, this time with no disturbances. As soon as he opened it however, he was greeted to a horrific and bloodied sight.

Limbs, skin and bone lay scattered all over the exposed floor boards. Blood seemed more like paint as it covered almost everything. Shadow's stomach reacted horribly and he soon found himself throwing up violently in the corner. Coughs tore through his throat and he choked on bits of his own stomach lining that got caught; nearly causing him to vomit again. This time though, he managed to hold it back. He wiped away some of the vomit that was dripping from his chin and breathed heavily to calm himself. For now, he could only hope that his endurance would pay off and that something useful would be in here.

Trying his best to ignore the current unpleasant surroundings, Shadow noticed another small chest and began to head for it. Before he could reach it, the whiteness came back.

* * *

"_Excellent! Now that I have some background information on that buzz boy, perhaps I could use him to my advantage. Being so young and so innocent makes him vulnerable! I can trap him again, just like I did before."_

The overpowering smell quickly told the hedgehog that he was

* * *

back to normal, but he still couldn't figure out why he was hearing these things. He opened the chest, deciding that he would think more about these 'visions' once he was out of this place. The mammal grumbled at only finding a single lighter and moved into the only part of the room that he hadn't checked. The only items of interest were both on the table with a closet nearby wielding nothing. There was the third chemical and a note next to it.

'_Today, I looked back through some of my previous inventions. I only paid attention to those that brought me the closest to success and chucked complete failures to the floor behind me._

_My eyes lit up when I found one of my most brutal, but effective machines; the Egg Grape Chambers. I had thought about recreating them before, but the resources and hassle of it were far too great._

_I then remembered that I didn't need a whole vineyard… I only needed one with perhaps a backup._

_This time will be different and they are hopeless to stop it.'_

It seemed that with every note that his blood, red eyes skimmed over, the more questions that accompanied it. Shadow didn't have a clue at what the note was talking about, but he could only assume that it was something terrible. He took both the note and the bottle, 'Aqua Regia' and hurried out of the room before his insides turned to chaos.

Once Shadow had returned to the bottom of the steps, he could see the two remaining doors that he had yet to enter. His insides had calmed now that he wasn't in the previous room and felt as if he could get through the last area without making such a mess.

*Groan*

As he reached for the handle of the first door, he heard a growl from the other side and a bottle break as if something was moving around. Shadow slowly backed away from the door and moved to the second whilst his gaze made sure that nothing followed him.

Before he entered, the hedgehog glanced left and right to make sure nothing was there and then headed left to a dead end with some shelves. His mind was sceptical that he would find anything, but was soon glad that he checked. Upon the bottom shelf was a bottle he had not yet seen, but as he picked it up…

*Growl*

…an all too familiar growl came from his right. Shadow quickly turned and his eyes met with a shadowy figure stood near the door. The hedgehog instantly turned the lantern off and crouched in the corner. The darkness made it hard to tell what it was, but the silhouette looked human, yet the noises it made certainly weren't. Shadow paid attention to his instincts, which were screaming at him, telling him that the figure was not to be trusted. The mammal stayed low hoping that it would eventually walk away. Each second that passed felt like an hour and the stress of having some unknown creature near was making his headache unbearable. It still stood motionless and Shadow knew that he would have to move at some point. With no weapons and his vision becoming steadily less focused, the thought of throwing up again quickly gave him enough courage to move. His feet moved quietly across the dirt floor with the idea that he could perhaps sneak out and sprint back up the stairs before it could catch him. His plan however, was unnecessary as the creature began walking in the other direction and out of sight around the corner.

Shadow slumped against the wall and leaned his head back in relief. His lungs begged for air and his heart rate was still through the roof to the point where he could hear it in his ears. He put a hand to his head, but soon put it back down when another sharp sting ran through it. The hedgehog remembered the bottle he picked up and turned on his lantern so that he could read it.

'Laudanum: A medical bracer to improve health and help heal wounds.'

"Perfect." He whispered, placing the lantern next to him and applying it to his arm. Shadow continued this until the bottle had run out, but at least he was feeling better. Now he would have to be more careful, at least until he found some more… assuming he would.

After sitting down for a few more minutes to gather some kind of coherent thought, Shadow stood back up and very quietly searched the rest of the room. He failed to notice a hole in the ceiling, so when a few stray rocks fell from it; he nearly tripped over in fright.

"Sweet fucking Chaos!" He growled after they had fallen. His feet reluctantly continued into another part of the cellar until he saw another door. It didn't take him long to realise that this was the door that had the growling behind it. Looking around now, it was clearly empty. His pace was slow, but steady as he wanted to get out as quickly as he could. Another dead end greeted him, but thankfully upon one of the wine racks, was the fourth and final chemical.

'Orpiment' it read.

"_I am done here."_ Shadow thought as he headed for the nearest door that took him to the stairs. With no hesitation, he quickened his pace until he was out.

* * *

Shadow had no time to even breathe as the first thing that greeted him was more of the dangerous red flesh. With no more Laudanum, Shadow would have to be agile in order to dodge the crimson death. He effortlessly dodged the first pile only to be welcomed with more in front of the Laboratory, which was where he needed to go. The hedgehog took a deep breath and leapt over. Despite nearly tripping over, he made it unscathed and returned to the lab.

* * *

Since being here once already, Shadow knew where he needed to go and focused only on the job at hand. A lighter was used on a candle next to the station with the four burners before getting to work. He gathered the four chemicals and poured one into each of the fours glass bottles, but as he placed the third, a cry echoed through the lab and something crashed in the other room. Shadow stopped what he was doing and crouched down, in case anything was near. Once everything had quietened down, he poured the fourth chemical. The chemistry pot, which he had picked up the first time he was here, was placed underneath the outlet. Once done, he lit all four burners and turned some wheels before allowing science to do the rest. Out the end came an illuminous, green liquid.

"_Acid."_ Shadow thought with a smirk. _"I'd like to see that freak come after me now."_ He carefully took the acid and headed to the-

"What the…" Shadow couldn't believe his eyes. The crash he had heard earlier was the stairs collapsing. With a stern glare, the hedgehog looked around to see if there was anything he could use or climb on. Aside from an additional pot of oil, Shadow found a sturdy plank of wood, which he only hoped could hold his weight. He leaned it against one of the support beams and climbed up it enough so that he could grab the edge and pull himself up to the next level. He grinned smugly, being proud of his progress and left the laboratory.

* * *

The mammal was forced to take a step back and clutch his head when another roar shook the world around him. Flesh was now everywhere. It was as if the walls, floor and ceiling had been entirely replaced with it and Shadow was certain that he would sustain some kind of injury. In a sudden burst of speed, he ran and jumped over as much of the tissue as he could. Pleasantly, he didn't take any damage and came back into the Entrance Hall unscathed. His eyes looked back at the obstacle only to see it over the walls and stone floor as if it was reaching out to take over more of the environment. The odd flesh made Shadow feel nervous and he wanted to get away from it as much as he could.

Shadow re-familiarised himself and remembered that the only path he didn't take was the one leading down. Knowing there was literally no other way to go; he walked steadily down more stone steps and through a door to see another wall of tissue.

"Now where am I supposed to go?" He questioned aloud until he remembered the acid. Shadow thought that the liquid could've been an effective weapon, but his current situation forced his hand. He got the pot and poured the acid onto the flesh causing it to react and dissolve. The mammal sighed, but decided to keep the pot in case he could get his hands on some other dangerous liquid. In the meantime, he moved onwards into the Refinery.


	4. Not Ultimate Enough

The atmosphere was dark, damp and very uncomfortable. Shadow seemed to be in a tunnel, which meant no windows. He checked his lantern and noticed that it was nearly empty. Before he went on, he used the three pots of oil he had gathered and poured them all into the lantern, ensuring that he could travel light in case he needed to run and hide. Now that he felt more prepared, he held the lantern in front of him and began to walk through the tunnels.

As he progressed, Shadow noticed evidence of the 'thing' that was hunting him. It was just in the corners or occupying part of the wall, but it was definitely there. Before he could think more, white overcame him.

* * *

_Shadow knew he was sat down and he had his arms wrapped around someone else, who he assumed was Espio. He could faintly hear the TV before he spoke._

"_Look at him; he's practically drowning in his own glory." He complained._

"_I sense jealousy." Espio teased._

"_Hardly, just fed up of seeing the same face on the news every damn week." The hedgehog complained further._

"_I can understand that. He gets all the action, all the excitement, while we sit here doing pretty much nothing. It bothers me… does it bother you?" He felt himself nod._

"_To some extent, yes." He held Espio's hand and played with it as he spoke. "It's not the attention that gets to me; it's more the feeling of being… forgotten." Espio rested his head on his shoulder and sighed whilst they continued watching the TV._

* * *

Regret. The feeling cast over him like a tidal wave, but he had no idea why. He wanted to know; he wanted answers, even if his former self 'chose to forget'. Shadow kept his guard up. He noticed that he had been walking for a few minutes without anything occurring and that had alarm bells ringing in his mind. His ears paid attention to the noises, while his eyes kept watch for movement. The tunnel then opened up into the main refinery where giant barrels stored untold amounts of wine.

*Growl*

Once he placed a foot into the room, a growl came from a large doorway in front of him. There was no obvious place to hide, but Shadow figured that he could use the darkness to his advantage. The lantern was soon extinguished and he crouched, keeping an eye on the doorway as the same shadowy figure walked slowly past. His crimson gaze locked onto it like a heat seeking missile and only moved once it was out of sight.

Shadow placed each foot carefully. The creature had gone right so in order to avoid it, the hedgehog went left. Once through another door, he closed it behind him and lit a candle in order to preserve oil. He wanted to sit down and rest, but if the human-looking creature was still around, then he had to keep moving. A pot of oil on a shelf to his left was the only item of interest that he found before he continued through another door to his right.

He approached a wine rack and grinned once he saw another bottle of Laudanum upon it. Once it was safely in his possession, he noticed a note on a small, wooden table next to it. Before he could pick it up however, the next door in front of him suddenly blew open. Thinking it was the creature; Shadow ducked down behind the table and kept the lantern off. Nothing followed the strange event and Shadow brushed it off as a fluke. He then read the note.

'_Man, I didn't think I'd ever get out of that room!_

_Tails praised me for my 'courage' and advised us to leave the base as soon as possible._

_Anyway, Tails and Cream were worried that they couldn't get the door open again and that I would be trapped. Soon however, they did get the door open enough again for me to crawl out._

_Once I was through and back on my feet, Cream… hugged me. Yeah, yeah I know, it's just a hug and she's hugged me a hundred times before, but this one felt different; like we hadn't seen each other in years. It was an amazing feeling and it has been on my mind ever since._

_If I could recreate it, then I would in a heartbeat.'_

Shadow knew there and then that Charmy had feelings for Cream. It was obvious by the way he wrote about it, but he still wondered what that had to do with anything. Nonetheless, he took the note and went forward into a room with a long table. Nearly every chair was knocked over and for some reason, that made the mammal uncomfortable, as if something bad had happened here.

Shadow came up to a door on his left, but glared slightly when it wouldn't open. There was a light shining from the other side and the hedgehog was clearly curious. Up ahead was a stack of small crates, which had a light shining from behind them. Once Shadow got close enough to investigate, he noticed a small opening in the wall, which led to the same room Shadow wanted to go into. He quickly crawled in and felt safer knowing that the creature would be too big to follow. His security was short lived however, when another roar echoed in the distance. Shadow knew he wasn't safe and wondered how long it would be until he was.

More piles of flesh dotted the room, but not enough to slow him. As he looked around, he found another barrel of oil which, while contained less than before, still filled the remaining space in his lantern until it was nearly full. He also found three lighters, one on a shelf and two in a small chest. His most intriguing find though, was a trapdoor that could be opened by a rope mechanism that was attached to the wall. When Shadow turned it though, it wouldn't open and felt as if it was jammed. The hedgehog followed the rope across the ceiling until he saw a small plank of wood lodged into it. He tried his best to reach it, but couldn't because of his height. Thankfully, there were plenty of crates nearby, which Shadow climbed on in order to reach. It was difficult to remove at first, but it eventually snapped and the two broken pieces fell to the floor, thus allowing the trapdoor to be opened.

The handle turned smoothly and the hatch lifted. Before he jumped down, Shadow looked to see that he would be landing on a web of flesh. He could only hope that his legs wouldn't be ripped off. With a deep breath, he dropped and continued on unharmed until he got to the door that led to the Cellar Archives with more roars booming from behind him.

* * *

"_Ugh, more tunnels?"_ He thought in annoyance. He was really starting to miss the natural light. Three steps forward and his vision went black. His mind began to scream and he tightly gripped his skull, begging for it to stop. The moment his vision returned, the screaming had silenced and the tunnels were now flooded, nearly up to his knees.

"What the fuck?!" He yelled, only to be quietened when he heard splashes in the water. Shadow was stood still. His red eyes soon widened when he saw the splashes coming towards him, yet the cause of them was invisible. "Oh shit!" He shouted before jumping onto a heavy crate nearby. The splashes approached, but then stopped next to the crate he was on. Whatever it was, it couldn't get him… as long as he was out of the water. Shadow looked around wondering where to go. The corridor went left, which was where this 'water monster' came from, so he figured that was where the exit was.

The mammal hopped from crate to crate, trying his best to avoid a watery grave. Once he reached the corner, he jumped in the water for a second to reach the next crate and was far too quick for the creature to grab him. He kept going until a heavy gate to his left stopped him in his tracks.

"ARG! Give me a damn break!" He yelled in fury and punched the wall next to him. The gate was mechanised meaning there had to be a switch somewhere in order to get it to open.

Shadow went back and saw a room to his right, but he would have to go into the water again in order to get into it. He tightly closed his eyes for a second and he leapt as far as he could before wading through to another crate. The creature had now caught up with him. It seemed as if it moved faster when Shadow was in the water, as if it honed in on its prey.

"_No… no, you've got to be kidding me!"_ Shadow thought in panic when the only thing he found in the room was one more bottle of Laudanum. Not a switch anywhere. The hedgehog now had to backtrack to a room he remembered seeing on his right when he first entered.

The water monster was hot on his heels as he waded through the water, but he made it to the room only by the skin of his teeth. This feeling was hell; the feeling of being hunted to the brink of death, that any mistake at all could cost you. It was a kind of pressure he had never felt before or at least couldn't remember, and he hated it. Every fur on his back was on end and shivers wouldn't stop ravaging his bones. Confidence was injected into him the moment he caught sight of a lever on the far wall.

Jumping across more crates, he made it and instantly pulled it up. Without thinking, he bolted past the creature and moved as fast as he could before the gate closed. Ticking caused his pulse to race even more and he could barely breathe at the thought of failure. Shadow raced down the corridor and back to the gate to see it slowly descending. With no time, he dove for the gate hoping to crawl underneath it, but the water slowed him down more than he anticipated.

The water creature was able to close the gap far quicker than Shadow thought and it wasn't long before it was clawing at his leg. Shadow cried in agony as its invisible claws easily broke the skin and caused him to bleed heavily. In a fit of rage and panic, the hedgehog kicked madly until his leg was free and the gate closed. The mammal heaved himself up onto a heavy crate next to him and grabbed his leg in pain, but his brief moment of relief diminished as he noticed more splashes in his peripheral vision. His head turned left to see that he wasn't dreaming. The gate was closed, meaning that there was no way the first monster could've gotten through.

"There are two?! There are fucking two of them?!" This was the first time since being here that he felt like giving up. Shadow couldn't see a way out and this room in particular, was much larger with nearly no crates. Trying to wade across would be suicide. He threw a smaller crate next to him in the water out of frustration only to notice a pot of oil, a human leg and a human arm next to him.

Naturally, he gave a disgusted look at the detached limbs, but then began to think. The creature hunted organic prey, perhaps the arm and leg could be used as bait. He picked up the oil and then studied his leg. It was badly wounded and blood poured from it, but it wasn't broken and Shadow knew he would have to run if he had any hope of escape. He held the arm in one hand and crouched on one knee as if ready to start a race. Suddenly, he threw the arm some distance away into the water and then waited patiently. His expression seemed calm and focused, but on the inside, he was a complete wreck and the pain from his leg was causing his eyes to water. His blood orbs stared at the splashes as they made their way towards where the arm had landed. Once there, Shadow ran for it.

He moved as quickly as he could to another heavy door with a wheel next to it. Acting on instinct, he turned the wheel, which then slowly lifted the door. The process was slow and soon enough, the creature was back on his tail. Another heavy crate to his right provided him with temporary safety and thankfully, an entire human torso was also on top.

"Would you kindly FUCK OFF?!" Shadow yelled as he threw the torso into the water ready to be devoured. Once it was distracted, Shadow went for the wheel and turned it until the gap was big enough for him to crawl under. He then waded through the water and through a wooden door. A heavy door was on the other side, but it wouldn't open. Shadow glanced around in panic until he saw a hollow needle on one of the bookshelves. He could trick the lock! A crate was next to the door, which allowed Shadow to briefly concentrate long enough to unlock the door and get through into the Archive Tunnels.

* * *

Once the door was securely shut behind him, Shadow took a second to breathe. He was genuinely surprised how he hadn't had a heart attack already. His eyes were closed as he appreciated the silence, but he knew all too well that it wouldn't last. Once calming himself enough to think, he moved forward through yet more flooded tunnels. Flesh lined the walls and made the water appear red.

"_Comforting."_ Shadow thought sarcastically. He waded up to another wooden door and walked through. _"It's far too quiet…"_ As if being able to read his thoughts, splashes could suddenly be heard behind him. There were no crates and nowhere to hide; all he could do was run.

He kept his lantern off as he used all of his strength to propel him through the water. He would come to a wooden door and close it behind him in order to slow the creature down. He would go left every time there were multiple paths, for reasons he didn't know, but it seemed to work. There was debris, which the hedgehog would effortlessly jump over with a rush of adrenaline. This chase felt more familiar to him. While the risk of death was still all too real, he felt that speed was one of his strengths and with the help of doors and debris barricades, he could outrun it with no problems. Shadow had completely forgotten about the pain in his legs and continued to speed through the water until he finally found the way out; another heavy door leading to the Back Hall.

* * *

*Slam!*

The door was closed and his aquatic nightmare, over. Shadow collapsed to the ground gasping for air as if he had just been strangled. Water dripped from his now drenched fur and blood still continued to flow out of his leg. He moved himself until he was sat leaning against a wall and used another bottle of Laudanum on his leg. It seemed to be enough to tame the wound for now and he took this opportunity to rest.

He didn't _need_ sleep, he never had done, but his body felt exhausted and his mind felt drained. It was as if his life force altogether was seeping from him.

"_Why am I here?"_ He questioned as his thoughts quickly returned. So many questions had been thrown upon him, yet he had answered very few. He knew Espio was his lover, but why was he here and how was he in danger? Who was Charmy and what was his relation? What was hunting him and why?

The sound of running water caused his ear to twitch and, as much as he had had enough of water, he wanted to know what it was. A long, stone staircase led up to another floor with large windows and a fountain opposite. It was light and even angelic considering the experience he had just been through. It was if he had just ascended to heaven.

Shadow paid attention to nothing else for now and went straight to the fountain. A gust of wind blew open a door to his left, but it didn't frighten him and he felt no hostility. It felt… normal.

Once he reached the fountain, he set the lantern down next to him and knelt down. His hands cupped some of the water and he splashed it onto his face, refreshing him. He then cleaned his fur that had been stained by blood or the filthy water of the Archive Tunnels. This water was clean and even healing to his body and mind. Shadow's entire aura felt calm and for once he could say the one phrase that had jinxed him so many times before.

"I am safe."


	5. Fuelled By Nothing

Shadow stayed by the fountain for a while, as if leaving it would be a crime. He wanted to make the most of this rare moment of comfort and nothing was going to make him leave, unless he wanted to.

His eyelids gently closed and he wanted to picture Espio, but he couldn't. When he hears past memories, he cannot see anything. He couldn't remember what he looked like, which hurt him. Despite this though, he wanted Espio to be his reason for getting out. His purpose. The mammal even dared a smile at the thought of being hugged by another as soon as his freedom was returned to him. Whilst still sitting next to the fountain, he looked around the room. It was a lot larger than he had first thought, with two sets of stairs leading to two more doors on another landing. Magnificent eagle statues were next to the base of both stairs, while there was one door far left and another on the far right. He had four more paths, which he thought he would work through systematically. Going left first and working his way round to the right.

He rested his eyes for a little longer, still appreciating this feeling of content that he could bask in for eternity. His thoughts travelled to Espio again and gave him enough courage to get up and head to the first door, leading to Storage.

"I will meet you again."

* * *

He stared into darkness as soon as the door closed. It was ridiculously black, far darker than anywhere he had been so far and Shadow didn't like it. It didn't seem right, as if this kind of darkness just wasn't supposed to happen. A lit candle in the centre with a lighter next to it provided him with a temporary destination, but he knew he would have to be extra careful. With his eyesight next to useless, he would have to rely heavily on his hearing.

He lit a torch on the wall behind him and went into a now visible door on his left. It led to a smaller room with many shelves for tools and lighters. After picking up three of them, Shadow noticed the end to a drill. He saw it as a potential weapon, assuming he could find something to attach it to, and took it with him.

*Growl*

Once he picked it up, a growl he hadn't missed came from the main room. Shadow hid amongst some barrels and paid attention to the footsteps to determine how close the creature actually was. They were faint and continued to get fainter until the hedgehog couldn't hear them at all. He assumed it was just passing by and got out from his hiding place to continue.

He lit more torches as he went round and found two more paths, some steps going down and a tunnel going ahead. He decided to go down first, into the area with a sign saying 'Equipment'. It was just as dark, but at least a small window at the top of the room allowed some light to flow in.

There were several giant barrels, just like the ones in the Refinery and four more doors. He ventured into the right-most one first, only to find a lighter under a table and a note on top.

'_Dad,_

_I have little time. You need to come to Eggman's base right away! He's captured me and I need your help! Bring Shadow with you; you're going to need him._

_I am so sorry! You must be so disappointed in me! I'll never go anywhere without you again! I swear it! I just want to go home!_

_The address is at the bottom. Please hurry!_

_Charmy.'_

The bottom of the note was torn off, but Shadow's jaw had already dropped. He couldn't understand. How could he have retrieved a Chaos Emerald, whatever that was, at one point just to be captured the next? Was this 'Eggman' person the one who was planning something in the previous notes he had read? The hedgehog felt angry. His nephew, although he still wasn't certain, had been captured and here he was stuck in a dark room. For now, he could only hope that Charmy made it out ok.

The second room wielded only two lighters while the third had two more, plus a piece of the drill that he had found earlier. Shadow was hesitant to pick the part up, but soon relaxed when he heard nothing outside.

Before heading to the fourth, Shadow couldn't help but notice the soothing sound of raindrops on the roof of where he was. He had never truly appreciated the simple touches that nature brought to the world and it felt as if simply being able to hear the outside was a miracle. He then went on to ponder how long he had been in here. To him, it felt like years and he wondered if he would get out at all, if there really was an escape.

The fourth room in the equipment area housed another couple of lighters and the drill's handle. He again hesitated, but picking the part up had no negative repercussions. The hedgehog then got out all three parts that he had gathered and easily combined them into a carpenter's drill.

"Not a very practical weapon…" He thought out loud. "…but it will do for now." With nowhere else to look, Shadow returned to the main area and went down the tunnel with his lantern burning brightly. Another light then took over his vision.

* * *

"_This is so cool! I've never been able to hold one of these before, let alone take it home!" Footsteps echoed upon the metal surface._

"…_Wait, what was that?" A female voice wondered. Something approached._

"_No! Back off! Get away from her! AHH!"_

* * *

"What the-?!" Shadow was instantly disturbed by what he had heard. The voice screaming was undoubtedly Charmy's and remembering the note he had read previously, he could only assume that what he heard was him being captured. A new sense of anger filled him and in turn gave him more determination to get out alive. He stormed defiantly down the tunnel until he was stopped again, this time by a rock slide that was blocking his path.

Shadow put the lantern down and used all his strength to try and move the boulders, but it was no use, they were far too big. He could see a light shining from through the rocks and knew that there was more of the storage area on the other side. But how could he get through? He wasn't strong enough on his own and he no longer had any chemicals to try and create something useful. The drill certainly wouldn't be strong enough. Shadow decided to go back to the equipment area to see if he could find anything.

He searched for a few minutes, but the only things that even vaguely stood out were two barrels, both in corners that were different from the others. They had taps on them, but they were both rusted and unusable. He saw that they were both made of wood and thought that his newly acquired drill could aid him.

Carefully, he placed the end to the wood and turned the handle until an unknown liquid began to pour out. Thankfully, he still had the chemistry pot and placed it where the liquid was landing on the dirt ground. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be much of the liquid at all and the pot was only filled about half way. The hedgehog went to the other barrel and repeated the process to find that the liquid in this one was different. Shadow had no idea how this would help him nor did he know what the two liquids mixed together were capable of. Either way, he carried the pot with him as he made his way back to the rock slide. Whilst walking, a sizzle was suddenly heard and Shadow was quickly surrounded by the endless darkness.

"For crying out loud…" He whispered as his lantern had run out of oil. The mammal was forced to stop and take out his last two pots and pour them in, allowing the lantern to spark back into life.

Once there, he placed the pot next to the rocks and for some reason hoped that it would just magically remove the blockade on its own. Shadow sat on the wooden steps and placed a hand on his chin. He kicked small pebbles off of the step below him whilst he thought, but one of them knocked the pot. It was only slight and Shadow thought nothing of it until the solution began to sizzle and light up. He raised a brow at first, but his eyes shot wide when he realised what was about to happen. "Oh SHIT!" But his realisation was far too late. The blast was a lot more powerful than Shadow ever thought and the force of it slammed the hedgehog straight into the wall.

Dust from the explosion caused Shadow to cough violently, whilst a loud ringing was present in his ears. His vision was a total mess as his head also made hard contact with the wall, making him dizzy. He was forced to rest and recover from the impact, but while the ringing faded quickly, he was certain that he could hear a feminine voice crying.

"Is that the… girl from earlier?" He thought as he remembered the scream nearby the Wine Cellar and Laboratory. Shadow rubbed the side of his head to try and ease the pain, but felt blood slowly trickle down the side of his face. The mammal assumed it was just a scratch as he wanted to conserve what little Laudanum he had, in case of a larger injury. His glove wiped most of it away before he got back up and continued.

Unfortunately, the light he saw from behind the rocks was merely the light from the floor above where they had caved in. The rest of storage however, was just as pitch black as before. Shadow didn't want to use his lantern since he knew his oil supply was running low, but when the darkness was enough that he couldn't see his hand in front of his face; he knew he didn't have a choice.

He came to a smaller room with a path leading off to the left. An island in the middle had a candle on it, which Shadow lit. He didn't look around as he wanted to preserve his oil and proceeded forward, with more voices returning.

* * *

"_Where are you taking me?! Let go dammit!"_

* * *

As quickly as it came, it disappeared. Shadow's gut was telling him that what was about to happen to Charmy wouldn't be good and that somehow seemed to bother him. Despite his concerns, he pressed on into another room with two doors.

"Ugh! Seriously? Who keeps this here?" Shadow questioned with disgust as he opened the first door to see decomposing pig corpses hanging from the ceiling. He took a quick skim around the room only to find a lighter before leaving. The smell reminded him too much of the Wine Cellar.

As he approached the second door, he could hear the same voice weeping.

"Hello?" He asked, with his voice sounding stern. He opened the door only to be greeted by a horribly deformed human body staring back at him. Shadow's jaw dropped in horror. This was the first time he had seen the creature up close and his lantern lit up all of its unworldly features. Only one of its eyes was still in its head as the other dangled lifelessly. Its bottom jaw was unnaturally stretched and hung close to its chest with the odd tooth sticking out. The nails of both its hands were more like claws, making each hand swollen and bloody by how horribly overgrown they were. Its bare skin was also stretched and folded over itself. Shadow was certain, whether he could remember or not, that this was the most disturbing sight he had ever seen… and now it had seen him. It began walking oddly towards him as Shadow slammed the door in its face. He glanced around the room, wondering where to hide. His safest bet was back in the pig room. Dirt was kicked up by how fast he ran and he slammed the door behind him and hid amongst some barrels in the opposite corner to the dead pigs.

All of his attention was now focused on the door as he heard the creature break out and start to roam. Each step got steadily louder and Shadow was certain that it was about to break through his door and find him. He mentally prepared himself, but listened intently when he heard the footsteps gradually get further and further away. Once they were gone completely, Shadow tried to sit down, but yelped when he sat on something weird. He turned the lantern back on and looked to see a pot of oil.

"Oh…" Was all he could say as he tried to fight back his embarrassment. Once he saw that the area was clear, he made haste towards some more wooden steps at the other end of the room.

* * *

"_No! Get off of me! AH! HELP! SOMEBODY! AHH!"_

* * *

Shadow gasped at the sounds he had heard. Charmy wasn't just screaming for escape, he was also getting brutally beaten up by whoever had captured him.

"The poor little guy…" Shadow trembled. No one should have to go through something like that. He dragged himself up the stairs, feeling hopeless being unable to save him.

He was quickly startled when a fire lit up in front of him and he heard a chilling scream from Charmy echo through his ears. He fell to his knees and covered his head in despair and felt an overwhelming sense of loss. Was Charmy dead? Shadow couldn't be sure, but he knew this feeling was all too real. He had felt this before. He gently placed his hands on the ground and looked up at the flame. A sudden wetness felt cold upon his face. His hand made contact with it and his red eyes widened when he realised that he was crying.

Shadow was unfamiliar with this feeling. He could tell that he didn't cry much or simply wouldn't allow himself to for fear of seeming weak. It was relief, yet he could still feel the despair at the same time. It was nothing short of odd.

"_I… have to keep going."_ He thought to try and keep up his morale. _"If Charmy is still alive, then I have to get out of here and find him."_ With that, he got back to his feet and went through the door to his right. It was a cramped room with only a couple of shelves, but there were three things on them that caught Shadow's attention. One was a note and the other two were strange, rod-shaped items. One was glowing blue and the other, red.

The note explained how the rods, and a third in a study room, helped to power an elevator. He had no idea what elevator the note was describing at this point, but he assumed it was somewhere in the Back Hall. He took the note and picked up both rods before heading for the door. Just as he was about to open it…

*Growl*

…a growl was heard from outside. His instinct was getting used to the pattern by now, turn the lantern off and crouch. He backed away from the door and found a heavy crate to hide behind. It was safe to say that he wasn't moving anywhere for a little while.

Every second seemed to irritate Shadow further. He must have been sat here for a good five minutes and even considered taking a nap just to pass the time. His patience soon wore out and he headed for the door. He was about to swing it open, about to not care if anyone was there or not, until he heard footsteps getting louder. Shadow removed his hand from the handle and backed off. He stood still for several seconds until the creature began knocking the door down. Without saying anything, Shadow dove back behind the crate and remained silent. The door was down in a few hits and the creature limped in without a care. It would growl and sniff every now and then, but despite its intimidating nature, it didn't seem all that intelligent. It only took a few steps into the room before giving up and leaving. Shadow was completely baffled, was _this_ the thing that had been after him the whole time? Was _this_ the one that had scared him? Shadow chuckled under his breath at the thought.

"You are kidding me." He said under his breath with a clear grin. The situation seemed amusing to him now.

After climbing out of his hiding spot for the second time, Shadow easily made it back to the rock slide. There were no creatures, visions or anything… which only made the hedgehog more nervous. He knew how his luck ran by now and was sure to keep his guard up. Nearing the rock slide, another roar, which was louder this time, came from above. It sounded as if it was about to crash down upon him. Shivers ran through his body and he was worried that its cries would attract others. Once he reached the stairs leading back up to the main room…

*Growl*

…another growl came from the corridor in front of him. Knowing what to do, he went back to the lit candle and hid behind some barrels in the corner until the creature left. Whilst he waited, he found a small chest behind the barrels with two more lighters and another bottle of Laudanum.

"_How many of these things do I have now?"_ He wondered as he looked at the lighter in his hand. After a minute or two, Shadow decided that it was safe to move ahead. He tried turning the lantern back on, but it wouldn't work. Shadow had only one pot of oil on him, which he was forced to put into the lantern. The mammal needed to be very careful now as he was nearly out of oil altogether. His luck decided to have mercy on him as no more creatures showed up, thus allowing him to return to the Back Hall.


	6. Your Previous Life

Shadow allowed a heavy sigh to escape him once he was in the Back Hall. but something felt different. He no longer felt at ease, but he wasn't sure why. He walked back up, but more voices halted him.

* * *

"_How is this possible?! He fled when Sonic blew up his base!" He heard himself growl._

"_I have no idea!" Another male voice replied. It wasn't a deep voice, but not high-pitched either._

"_Robots ambushed us and-and… Charmy stopped them from getting to me!" A young female voice cried. "I'm so sorry, Mr. Shadow! This is my fault!"_

"_He must have left the emerald there on purpose knowing someone would go after it." The unknown male explained._

"_We must go. If Eggman planned all of this then we don't have much time." Espio said who he could hear was stood next to him. His voice seemed oddly calm, but maybe that was just a cover up._

* * *

The hedgehog could only breathe past it as he re-entered the main room of the Back Ball. He went back to the fountain first to clean the minor wound to his head when he noticed a human corpse in the water.

"Wha-what?!" He questioned, having no idea how it could've got there. He hadn't seen one 'normal' human at all since he had been here. Sighing, he refused to get cleaned up and decided to go up the grand staircase to his next destination, the Guest Room.

* * *

As soon as the door closed, more voices spoke through his ears.

* * *

"_His base is miles away! Why would you ever consider going this far out?! Chaos Emerald or not!" Espio's voice was angry, but Shadow could tell that he was just worried._

"_I'm sorry, Espio… we should've been more prepared." Tails told him._

"_No! You shouldn't have gone at all!" Espio snapped back. Shadow felt himself put a hand on his shoulder._

"_Espio… getting angry won't change anything. Just like you always tell me, you've got to focus. Charmy's our little fighter and he won't let Eggman take him that easily." With a sigh, Espio replied._

"_I know Shadow… thank you."_

* * *

"He's _'our'_ little fighter?" Shadow repeated now wondering if Charmy was more than just his nephew.

The Guest Room was a mess. It was as if a tornado had torn its way through. Chests of drawers, books and furniture were scattered all over the floor. There was another room to the left through and open doorway and a room to the right behind a closed door. Shadow checked the desk in front of him first and found only a note.

'_I found out that Charmy had been taken. We were told by Tails and Cream, who handed us a note that was written by him that had a small message and the location of where he was being held._

_I'm worried… I admit it and Espio is as well, but I'll stay by his side no matter what and we will save Charmy._

_If that bastard lays a finger on him, he will be sorry.'_

The black mammal could almost feel the same anger he knew he would've felt as he wrote it. With nothing else to go on, he searched the bedroom. There was another large desk in front of the window which had a crowbar and a lighter.

"Now you're talking." Shadow grinned as he picked it up and held it tightly in his hand. Another note was placed on a smaller desk next to the current one. With the other hand, Shadow picked it up and read it.

'_We made it to the heap of metal also known as Eggman's old base… or so we thought._

_Tails had his scanner with him and it was going crazy as if another Chaos Emerald was in the area. Tails seemed greatly confused by this. He was there when Charmy took it… could Eggman have put it back to lure someone else?_

_We didn't have time to ponder the many theories that surrounded the situation and quickly entered the destroyed base with the help of Tails and Cream flying us in. They led us to the room where the emerald was the first time, but it was locked by a huge steel door._

_I told everyone to stand back as I effortlessly Chaos Blasted the door to pieces._

_To our amazement, a Chaos Emerald was placed perfectly in the centre of the room; the same one Charmy had retrieved.'_

The hedgehog grew more concerned with each note he read.

"He better have made it out." Shadow growled to himself. He checked a closet and some drawers, but found nothing.

The last place to check in here was the area that was closed off by the door. Shadow tried to open it, but couldn't. The lock had been broken, meaning that he would have to force it open. He grunted as he looked at the crowbar in his hand. Chances are that it would break, but it was his only option after trying to kick the door down to no avail. He placed the crowbar between the door and the frame and pulled it back until it suddenly flew open and Shadow fell onto his back.

"I guess I'm stronger than I thought." Shadow commented, feeling smug. An annoyed look was soon on his face when he saw the crowbar in two pieces on the floor.

"_Would've been a crappy crowbar anyway."_ He thought, trying to shake off his disappointment. He picked up more oil, which he noticed on a bookshelf, before heading inside. Just as he entered, he heard something else.

* * *

"_HAHAHAHAHA! You really thought I would just leave it there? You're all going to have to do better than that!_

_If you're that desperate as to risk your lives for this brat, then come to the base that is more than ready to handle the likes of you!"_

* * *

Shadow was more confused by this one. It was that loud voice again, but he couldn't be sure what he was talking about. He shook it off once more and went inside. What lay behind the door was a small closet room. There were two sets of drawers in the middle with a wardrobe on either side of them. Shadow searched through each of them until he came to the final wardrobe…

*Growl*

…where a groan came from the other room.

"Shit!" He whispered as he jumped into the wardrobe and shut both the doors, hoping with everything he had that the creature wouldn't find him. His ears remained alert as they listened to each and every footstep, but Shadow wasn't sure if they were getting closer or further away. With caution, he opened the wardrobe door slightly to have a look through, but jumped back in fright when the creature began breaking down the door to the room.

In just a few hits, it burst in and began filling the room with its inhuman growls. Sweat made its way down the back of Shadow's neck as he stood stiff against the back of the wardrobe. The tension was driving him crazy and all he wanted to do was burst out and rip the creatures head off for having him literally backed into a corner, but he knew he had _some_ restraint. He closed his eyes and tried to steady his inconsistent breathing, so that he wouldn't become light-headed. Before he knew it, the beast had turned and confirmed it was leaving by slamming the door. Shadow slumped to the ground in much needed relief before getting up and returning to a note that he didn't have a chance to pick up before the monster's arrival.

'_Of course! I knew it was all too damn easy! Eggman and Charmy weren't in the base! They weren't even near!_

_Chaos damn it all!_

_A recording had been left, which Tails got working, and informed all of us that the scheming fucker had indeed captured Charmy! He showed him to us, with his typical sinister grin. He was in a horrid state with a clear black eye and cuts all over him! I had never seen Espio so enraged and I felt the same._

_He is dead! That tyrant has gone too far! I will do what Sonic never had the courage to and send him back to the Underworld for eternity!_

_No longer will he lay a finger on anyone else, especially not Charmy!'_

The hedgehog's fist clenched with the note still in his hand.

"How fucking dare he…" His cold voice whispered. He took several breaths to stop himself tearing the room apart and turned to leave, when he noticed a painting that had now been knocked off the wall. He assumed the monster's break-in had done it, revealing a hidden glass jar with a key inside it.

With ease, Shadow smashed the jar and retrieved the key. The tag read 'Machine Room'. The mammal knew he hadn't been anywhere that had anything even close to machinery, but just like the elevator, the Ultimate Lifeform assumed it would be in the Back Hall somewhere. Being satisfied with what he had found, Shadow exited and headed straight into the next room which was just to his left, the Study.

* * *

It was absolutely silent, minus the occasional cry of what sounded like a dying dog. Shadow didn't like it one bit, he felt as if he was back in the Archives. He was in a narrow corridor with bare floorboards, which contrasted greatly to the polished, wooden walls that held many paintings. It was dimply lit with a few candles above him, but it was at least enough that he could spare his oil.

He came to two rooms, one left and one right, which he explored briefly. The right wielded only a few lighters amongst the array of items and furniture that were carelessly scattered on the floor whilst left had only a note.

'_My plan could not have gone better! Even I had not been prepared for the tidal wave of good luck that has befallen me!_

_I have the teen still captive, but now I am about to have four more join my cause! Tails and Cream I knew would soon return, but I did not expect Shadow and Espio to follow!_

_HOHOHOHOHO!_

_Truly stupendous! Absolutely terrific! I could sing and dance right now! The Ultimate Lifeform and a ninja are about to succumb to my wrath!_

_I can only wait until they reach me, but until then, my bones are trembling with excitement!'_

"Cocky bastard…" Shadow commented to himself, while his thoughts travelled back to two familiar words.

"_Ultimate Lifeform…"_ What did that mean? Was he something special? Perhaps stronger than average or more intelligent? He couldn't be sure with the little bits of information he had, so he pushed the idea to the back of his mind and continued back into the corridor.

He turned left and towards several large windows, one of which had a pot of oil in front of it. As he went to pick it up, the cry of the 'thing' after him echoed from the forest outside. The sound was enough to crack the window and send more chills through the mammal's body. He was startled further by another dog's cry in a separate room behind him. Slowly, he approached and opened the door. What lay before him had his jaw hanging.

"_What sick bastard would do this?!"_ His eyes wandered over the pools of blood that littered a large table in the centre. In the corners, were the corpses of animals, a dog and rabbit to be precise, which had clearly been sliced apart and stitched back together. A horrific smell accompanied the sight and he was again launched back into memories of the Wine Cellar. Shadow forced anything coming up his throat back down with several hard swallows before heading towards another room in the back.

Before he got to the door, a note caught his eye on the edge of the crimson-stained table.

'_I have been testing the new and improved Grape Chambers with some hostages that my robots have captured and so far, they work perfectly! Draining their life force and ultimately ending them!_

_I will test now to ensure that the glass that holds my subjects will not be broken by a certain azure pest or… to be more appropriate, an ebony one._

_I cannot believe my luck, if this keeps up; I'll have the world in the palm of my hand in a week!'_

"Disgusting." Shadow said bluntly upon reading the frail piece of paper. He moved into the back room, hoping to stop himself from getting worked up all over again. He searched a desk and jumped back when human bones rolled out of the side compartment. Shadow was more confused than anything else, wondering why they were there at all. He searched further, finding a lighter in the second drawer and another note on a small desk in the corner.

'_Just as I had hoped, the glass of the chamber is near indestructible! _

_I had my robots gather every weapon I had and fired them all at once. Not even a scratch! I'd like to see that pathetic rodent get through it now! Not even a Chaos Blast will save his precious bee!'_

"Bee?!" Shadow exclaimed as his memory seemed to jump.

"_Charmy Bee… I know that name… he's not my nephew. He's… my son!"_ The black hedgehog was unsure whether he should celebrate at remembering something or be deeply concerned that he now knew that it was his son that had been captured. It was an odd in between, but it did give him more of a purpose. There must be something behind all this. With haste, he left the room and was about to whiz past the windows again, when he stopped suddenly. He felt drawn to it, the cracks especially. Perhaps he could break it and escape. A hard punch cast the glass into the trees below. The hedgehog then realised how high up he was and frowned knowing he couldn't get out this way. A light from a few windows to his right caught his eye. The ledges of each window were thick enough for him to jump across, allowing him access.

He avoided looking down as best he could as another roar caused a tree nearby to fall. He then dared a peek to notice webs of flesh joining a few of the trees together. His head shook slightly in disbelief as he moved towards the light. The window to this room had already been broken, by the distant beast Shadow assumed, and he was quick to start looking around. The first thing he noticed was another strange cylinder. The last time he found one of these was way back in the Laboratory.

Without warning, his entire vision turned red, as if his eyes were stained by blood. Shadow clawed at his face like some animal. He had no idea why, until the red faded and his vision returned to normal. Everything about those few seconds made him nervous, it had never happened before and he hoped it wouldn't happen again. His breaths were deep as he reached out again.

* * *

"_I want to scream at you! To tell you that it is you who is blinded! Yet I can't… as if any rights I had have been robbed from me. No apology can change this, nor do I want it to change. As wrong as it all feels, the situation is right."_

* * *

It was again his own voice, but it gave him nothing in the way of answers or perhaps nothing that he could understand quite yet. He sighed and put on a determined look, whilst keeping hidden that he was still anxious. Two more rooms were in the back, the first contained a barrel, which again contained a decent amount for his lantern, a glowing green rod, which Shadow remembered being mentioned in a note he found in Storage, and a note next to it. It explained how the elevator worked, should it break down again.

"_Bingo."_ Shadow thought as he kept the note handy. The second room had a large chest with only two lighters in it. He rolled his eyes thinking there would be more before returning to the broken window.

As he hopped back to the main part of the Study, he took more caution than he did before, fearing that the creature would try to knock him off. The roars did indeed return, this time having no mercy.

They created a slight quake, which caused Shadow to lose his balance and fall. In panic, he extended his arm hoping to grab onto the nearest thing. Luckily, he caught the ledge and held on for dear life. The creature roared again as if it was lurking in the depths, waiting patiently for its prey to fall.

Shadow, now feeling angered, denied the monster the privilege and pulled himself back up. He didn't stop until he was back on solid ground. His bruised and battered body laid there for a few minutes. He could feel the stress getting to him now. Were it not for the thought of Charmy and Espio, he was sure he would've given up long before now. After staring at the ceiling for a minute, the hedgehog, with some difficulty, got to his feet and returned to the Back Hall.


	7. No Such Mercy

"Oh no…" Shadow gasped as the flesh had begun to contaminate the Back Hall, the only place he once considered to be a haven. The fountain was now blood as more flesh sat comfortably in the water. The way to the Archive Tunnels was now entirely blocked off, not that he wanted to go back there anyway.

Re-focusing himself, Shadow went into the last door; the one that was blown open when he got to the Back Hall in the first place.

Out of sadness, Shadow quickly approached the fountain, as if to remember the time of peace and cleanliness it had once granted him. Unexpectedly, more voices popped up, which this time caught the hedgehog off-guard.

* * *

"_I should have known!" Espio yelled as they all hurried. Shadow could hear their rapid footsteps upon the metal and assumed they were still in Eggman's old base. "It was so obvious!"_

"_Espio, there was no way any of us could've figured this out." Shadow tried to comfort him._

"_At least he told us where he is now." Tails reminded them._

"_Probably only to tease us." Shadow whispered._

* * *

Shadow grunted. Both situations seemed hopeless. Eggman had Charmy and Shadow was stuck here; both with no escape. He couldn't help but think that they were connected in some crazy way. With some will power, he turned away from the fountain and headed for the door, which oddly was closed. The mammal quickly shrugged it off as nothing major and went inside to see another large room.

* * *

"_You're kidding… you think I'm going in there?! It's a death trap!" Espio snapped._

"_We have no choice, Es!" Shadow pleaded with him. "We'll just go in, ride the elevator, and get out. I'll be with you the whole time. I promise." He could clearly hear Espio's uncontrolled breathing and felt him grip his hand tightly._

"_O-ok." He stuttered before he heard footsteps go onto metal._

* * *

Shadow smirked warmly at the thought that appeared in his mind.

"_Hmph, Espio's afraid of elevators… cute."_ There was a gate at the far end, which Shadow knew must have been the elevator, and a door to his left. He approached the door first as it was closer, but found that it was locked.

"Hold on…" He mumbled as he got the key that he found in the Guest Room. More smugness showed in his grin as he entered the Machine Room.

* * *

It was incredibly gloomy, but held an odd sense of serenity. It was quiet in a way that didn't disturb him. He had a choice, go ahead or go left. Shadow went ahead first to find a single room on his right. There was a lit candle on a desk in the closest left corner. Once he got near, he noticed a note next to it.

'_We made it to the bastard's new base. The others were clearly worn out, yet they refused to rest, Espio especially._

_To get in, we needed to ride an elevator down. Espio was the first to protest since he was claustrophobic. Seeing him all nervous like that sparks courage in me, yet I feel bad… he shouldn't need to go through this._

_None of us should. I could've stopped Charmy from going anywhere. I could've told him straight up 'you're grounded'. But I didn't and now look… I should stop but… I feel as if I am to blame.'_

A sorrowful sigh escaped him. Shadow was currently feeling the same emotions that the note described. He was concerned for Charmy, more so now that he remembered exactly who he was, yet Espio still eluded him.

Also in the room, were six levers each with Roman numerals above and below. He lit a fixed lantern on the ceiling, so that he could see what he was doing without using up his oil. Remembering the note that explained how the elevator functioned, Shadow thought that it would be his best bet at figuring out what these levers were for.

Shadow skimmed through its text until he read: "The metres should read up 8 and down 8."

He had to adjust the levers until the totals added up to 8 both on the top and underneath. It was more a game of trial and error, but eventually, found the right combination. First two down, next three up and then the last one down.

Feeling content with what he had accomplished, Shadow returned to the pipe-filled corridor and headed down some stairs next to the exit. The mammal soon came across another room. After lighting his lantern, Shadow found another mechanism on the wall, a large chest with another two lighters and two more notes. The first read:

'_I will admit I was hesitant at first. We had been travelling all day and while I felt physically fine, I knew the others were tired and drained, yet every time I asked about stopping to rest, even for a few minutes, Espio would jump in and literally order us to keep moving._

_I know he wants to rescue Charmy, I do as well, but I would prefer to do so without one or more of us getting harmed or worse._

_I envy his stubbornness at times and would even go as far as to say that it suits him, but today, it is nothing short of dangerous.'_

He took the note from the small desk it was neatly placed on and read the second, this time on a larger crate.

It was a small note explaining the rods that he already had in his possession and how they should only be discarded if they were heavily damaged. Shadow now focused on the mechanism that had three empty slots. They were for the rods, but which was which? Above each slot was a shape; circle, triangle and square, in that order. He studied all three rods, which were now in his hands, but none of them had labels or anything which allowed him to decipher which one went where.

After more trial and error, he again was lucky to find the correct combination, not that it was all that challenging. Green, blue, then red respectively. Once placed and hearing more steam fly through the pipes above him, he left the room and ventured further down.

The room was so quiet that he could hear sounds coming from far in the distance. One disturbing roar in particular kept catching his attention. It was like a beast announcing its territory across the land, but he knew better, it was still hunting him. The thought alone, while unnerving, didn't truly scare him. It was as if his mind couldn't really believe that the flesh could kill him, no matter how dangerous he _knew_ it was. Shadow felt that he was smarter, more agile and quicker than the slimy tissue, which was slowly pursuing him.

The hedgehog came to the final room at the bottom of the machinery area, which contained the majority of pipes and cogs. He lit two ceiling lanterns and got to work figuring out what did what.

One large cog wheel had a lever next to it, which upon pulling it down caused the machine to move slightly, but then stop abruptly. There were three metal spokes sticking out from the wall, as if something was supposed to be there, but wasn't. He left it for now and went to a hatch that had a separate lever. Upon pulling it down, a small light lit up inside, but then burnt out. Shadow worked out that it needed fuel, but since he was at a point in time where electricity wasn't around, he knew it wouldn't be the kind of fuel that he was used to.

A smaller room was to his left, which contained piles of coal. The hedgehog nodded, now knowing what to do. He grabbed three large pieces and threw them in before closing the hatch and pulling the lever. The flame enveloped the coal and burned defiantly. Now Shadow had to figure out what else the elevator needed.

He gained more oil from a barrel in the coal room, which this time held very little, and a lighter before looking back at the instructions. It gave him no further clue as to what else was needed, so now all he could do was guess. Simply glancing around the room, Shadow spotted yet another note. It puzzled him how they got everywhere, but read it nonetheless.

'_Damn! Why do I keep letting this happen?!_

_The moment we exited the elevator, we were ambushed by Eggman's mechs. I charged at them as quick as I could, but one lucky shot made it into Tails' arm. He says he'll be ok, but I am NOT letting my guard down now._

_I am taking the lead! No one else is getting hurt! I don't care what Espio says!'_

Shadow could only shake his head as he slowly put the note away.

"_Always when things seem hopeful…"_ He pondered. _"Why is it that fate always takes it away?"_ Searching high and low for answers, Shadow found three cogwheels around the Machine Room. Normally, he wouldn't have taken any notice if it weren't for the small hole in the centre of each of them, perfect for a small spoke. He carried the three them, as awkward as it was, and placed them on one spoke each. The largest went on the left, smallest in the middle and the medium on the right. Certain that the thing still wouldn't work, he reluctantly pulled the lever.

The machinery rumbled into life, nearly causing Shadow to jump. He grinned with pride and folded his arms as he stared at his new achievement. With his gloves now being blackened from the coal and other dirt, he began to leave, completely letting his guard down.

He walked forward with confidence until more deadly tissue appeared from absolutely nowhere. It caught him by surprise and he nearly stood right into a large pile. He could only imagine the damage it could've potentially done to his leg.

"No… not now." He groaned, already missing the peace he had just seconds ago. Heading up the stairs, more of it began appearing and more frequently. His pace quickened to a jog as he now had to dodge the piles of flesh on the walls and floor. Thanks to his agility, good luck or both, he made it out untouched.

* * *

The Back Hall: a place of serenity, calm and safety. Wrong.

As soon as the Machine Room door closed, Shadow's vision went black just like it did in the Cellar Archives. He quivered and begged that he wouldn't be surrounded by knee-high water when his vision returned. It wasn't flooded with water, but with red. The organic beast had completely blocked the path back to the fountain and its fleshy substance almost took up the entire room.

Looking for an exit, Shadow saw the gate to the elevator and trod carefully, so that he wouldn't lose a limb. The two gates screeched horribly as they closed behind him and, with a slight sense of fear. Shadow pulled the lever and the elevator began to descend.

If Espio hated trusty, sturdy, advanced elevators, then he was sure he would have detested this one.

It was unstable and would rock from side to side, sometimes affecting Shadow's balance. It was loud and the lantern dangling above him would often go black for a second before the flame was revived. The hedgehog had no fear of these confined spaces, but this one certainly had him on edge.

Suddenly, his vision went black. This time only lasting a second, but more of the flesh lined the door of each floor as the elevator passed. Shadow backed up as far as he could thinking that the creature couldn't reach him. How wrong he was. While the flesh itself didn't touch him, it did attack the elevator itself, forcing it to stop.

"No!" Shadow yelled, but as he was about to try and escape, it jerked and began to free fall. The hedgehog wanted to scream, but his entire body froze as did all the functions that came with it. He could do nothing until it finally crash landed at the very bottom floor with Shadow still inside.

* * *

"Ugh…" Shadow groaned as his entire body ached. How long had he been passed out like this? His eyes were still half-closed as he turned to see a rock slide behind him instead of an elevator. "Crap…" He mumbled before collapsing back on his stomach.

Eyelids opened once again to yet more stone brick. Now having the strength to get up, Shadow looked at the door ahead of him, which was shrouded in darkness. How far down was he? In a few steps, more voices filled his head.

* * *

"_Are you sure you're alright?" A high-pitched voice cried. Shadow was staring, refusing to say a word for now._

"_Don't worry Cream, I'm fine. It just grazed me, I swear."_

"_We have to be more careful, that could've been the end of you." Espio said harshly. Shadow could feel himself become slowly irritated by this._

"_We're not that far in and already Tails is hurt. From now on, I am taking point. Do you all understand?" His voice was stern and on the edge of anger. The others remained silent as Espio argued._

"_You think I'm just going to let you walk out there to be cannon fodder?" Espio didn't yell, it wasn't something that he liked, but his voice conveyed his frustration and uneasiness._

"_You do not have a choice, chameleon. Come, we must keep going. Stay behind me."_

"Chameleon?!" Shadow exclaimed, forgetting completely that the very first note he had found, had already told him of Espio's species. Only his name seemed to stick with him. Still, a lot had happened and Shadow wasn't an expert in the memory department. The more he learned about his past, the more shocked he became. His thoughts remained on the topic as he cleared debris from a barred door. What he didn't know was that an entire prison lay before him, with horrors that would push him to his limit.

The first example of this was the moment he walked inside.

*Groan*

A familiar groan came from just around the corner, a groan he hadn't heard since the Wine Cellar.

It wasn't the monster he had run into so many times before. It was different and far more intimidating. The groaning continued, turning from curious to violent as he heard a man screaming within it, begging for his life to be spared. Then came the sound of metal being slashed with the man's cries becoming silent. The groans returned to normal as they faded into the distance.

Shadow slowly walked backwards until he had exited through the door he had just come through. He trembled as icy chills controlled him. His breathing was yet again broken with his pulse being loud in his alert ears. Of all the options he had, he really didn't want to go back in. Yet he had no choice. The thoughts of the ones he cared about did little to calm him and Shadow now realised that his mind was finally being strained, but he didn't want to believe it.

"I'm-I'm not scared. I don't get scared. I'm fine, everything is fine. I can get through this. I have to." He whispered rapidly to himself without taking a breath. With extreme caution, he silently went back in and made sure that nothing was around each corner.

The corridors were dark, narrow and cold. The smell of damp was filling his senses and he found it difficult to not get disorientated.

He followed the corridor, which first went left to see three new paths; one going right, one ahead and one left. The right one was closest so he went down that one first. It was blocked by a rockslide with only a single cell being available. He wanted to cry when he only found two lighters; a reaction which he knew was extreme. Shadow simply did not want to be in here. The darkness by itself felt menacing, regardless of what may have been lurking around each corner.

He took a deep breath and swallowed hard before heading down the left path, which was the next nearest one. Three more cell doors were in front of him. The left and right ones housed a hammer, another potential weapon, and a pot of oil which Shadow grabbed as if it was gold. One more door remained, but as he approached, he got a nasty surprise.

The body of a man was thrown at the other side of the door, which was thankfully locked. What followed after it was the source of all the alien-like noises. It was a beast he had never before seen and couldn't, until now, even imagine. The torch that burned behind it, plus the light from Shadow's lantern showed its features well, perhaps _too_ well.

Its head was horrifically split down the middle; he had no idea how it was alive. Teeth lined the middle with one wary eye keeping watch for its victims. It's method of attack? It's left arm, which had been entirely replaced by a large, heavy, metal blade whilst other bits of metal had been stitched to its body.

The shock of the unthinkable sight frightened Shadow to his very core. Never had he known that such a monstrosity could exist. He scrambled backwards after falling to his hands and knees until he went into the nearest cell and sat in the corner by a lit candle on the floor.

He tightly held onto his knees and shook violently. Dizziness had overcome his vision and the room appeared to be moving. Shadow closed his eyes tightly to avoid throwing up and to hope that his nightmare would end by any means necessary.

He didn't care who this Espio guy was, he didn't care if he couldn't remember him. All he wanted was him to be here or himself to be with him. For his arms to wrap around his frightened bones and whisper that everything is ok.

"Espio…" He whimpered quietly as fear and sadness travelled down his cheeks. "Where are you? Where am I? Get me out dammit… please…" He rocked back and forth as his scarred mind tried to recover. For the moment, he was petrified of his fate and was helpless to stop it.


	8. Barred Memories

**Hello everyone! I'm back with another chapter for you.**

**Before I go on, I realise that 'Replacing/Updating' chapters does not count as actually updating the story, which is a tad odd. So, as a note to those who may have missed it, all seven chapters before this one were updated/replaced last week with this new story. I suggest you read them first otherwise this chapter may not make a lot of sense. :)**

**Anyway here is Chapter 8 for you. This part of Amnesia was probably the scariest for me to get through, simply because of the amount of times the monster showed up and how easy it was to get lost. This prison was hell. :D**

**I think that's it for now! Enjoy the chapter and I will see you next Saturday with Chapter 9!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

An eternity seemed to pass. Every thought only numbed him further. How could he get up now? Knowing what sort of unworldly creatures awaited him. His eyes travelled to the blackened corridor, which only looked darker because his eyes had adjusted to the warming light of the candle. His breathing was steady and his dizziness had long gone, but his mind still feared.

He got up, not giving himself a reason for it apart from 'it was something to do'. His legs carried him casually back the way he came, until he stopped at the bottom of some steps. This was the only way he hadn't been yet and he debated going up them at all. Another emotionless sigh passed through his lips as he placed one foot in front of the other.

*Growl*

About halfway up, a growl was heard and without a moment to think, the monster walked round the corner and caught sight of him. The expression on his face didn't change, but his mind was screaming.

"_Not again! Run dammit! Run!"_ He suddenly turned on his heel and headed wherever his instincts took him. The monster gave chase, but the hedgehog had left his lantern off, which without realising, was the main reason the monster lost sight of him and left.

Shadow, whose breathing had deepened significantly, hid in the same candle-lit cell. Outwardly, he seemed unaffected by the encounter and tried his best to keep that façade until he got out… assuming he ever got out.

Once swiftly back up the stairs, he noticed an odd chair in the middle of the corridor with a pot of oil upon it. He picked it up and continued heading straight. More cells lined the next adjacent corridor. The left-most one offered a chipper, which Shadow realised was the other half to the hammer. The voices also came back, providing Shadow with another glimpse into his life before this.

* * *

_Footsteps could be heard as they continued walking through the base. Shadow felt himself glance behind him only to feel a sudden sense of panic._

"_Where's Tails and Cream?!"_

"_What?! They were right behind me!" Espio showed the same sense of concern._

"_This just keeps getting better and better!" Shadow punched a nearby wall, his hand hurt, but he didn't care. "Come on, if they've been taken then they may be with Charmy."_

_The footsteps quickened until they could no longer be heard._

* * *

"Terrific…" Shadow's voice lacked any energy and emotion. He was like a zombie, mindlessly searching through cells for various items. The next cell he came to was locked with a padlock. However, it was very weak, but Shadow couldn't pull it off by hand. He got out the hammer and chipper, which fortunately did the trick. Inside was a barrel of oil, which barely filled the lantern at all. On the floor was a human skull and some bones. He stared at them for a second, but didn't react to them at all.

"_Onto the next one."_ He thought plainly as he left and walked to the next door down. The door was open, but as he walked inside…

*Growl*

…a growl came from nowhere in the corridor he was just in. The door slammed in a sudden panic, which alerted the creature. Shadow stayed low in a corner and waited. His entire body was sweating, whilst his gaze was glued to the door. He could hear it walking and grunting, it was close… far too close, but nothing came. The monster soon walked off allowing Shadow to pick up the lighter and oil that was within the room. Only one more cell remained, which launched Shadow back into the past.

* * *

"_It's a dead end!" Shadow shouted angrily. "Where the hell do we go now?!" Espio stayed silent, but he could hear him moving objects behind him._

"_Here." He said simply._

"_A hatch? How did you know that was there?" Shadow questioned._

"_I didn't. I could merely feel the draft and followed it to these crates." Espio told him. A small smirk was on his face as he spoke again._

"_Eggman needs to learn to do better with you around." They then opened the hatch and climbed down the ladder._

* * *

Shadow looked to see a bed in front of him.

"I wonder…" He whispered as he moved it to see a small hole. There was no way he could fit through, but with the help of the hammer and chipper, the hole was soon big enough and the hedgehog could now see that an escape tunnel had been dug. "Thank you, Espio." He smirked before climbing and heading towards the Northern Cell Block.

* * *

The lantern hissed into darkness as the flame died. At least he had collected enough oil to keep it going for now. He poured in three out of the five pots he had and kept going until he found an exit. It was a hole in a wall, which led to yet more prison corridors. He found two signs; the first pointed right and was labelled 'Kitchen' while the other, pointing left, was labelled 'Storage'.

The hedgehog thought about which would likely be more useful to him and followed the signs to the storage area first.

Up more stairs he went. The atmosphere was quiet, which only added to his uncomfortable feeling. He halted when he heard banging on the wall to the left of him. Nothing broke through or made any other noise. He could only put it down to a 'strange occurrence' before continuing on. At the end, was a gap in the ceiling next to a cave-in, where Shadow took a second to gather his thoughts. The small spotlight allowed him to check his healing wounds without using more oil.

"Help…me…" An unknown voice whispered from the rocks. Shadow gasped slightly and backed away; unsure why it unnerved him at all. The mammal proceeded down another corridor and past a sign, which said 'Cell Area III'. Another storage sign pointed right, and then right again. Time seemed to slow as at the far end of the hallway, another split-headed monstrosity walked past.

*Groan*

His crimson eyes were wide and he could even feel himself trembling. It didn't notice him, but he knew now that it was in the halls with him; hunting just like the other.

Shadow made his way to two cells whilst staying low, in case the creature came back. There was one on either side of him and he pulled the left door first, but something stopped him.

*Growl*

His gaze shot either side of him, but nothing was there. It wasn't coming from the side this time; it was coming from in front. Shadow froze when he saw the monster walking towards him through the bars in the door and he flew himself into the other cell. A note and lighter were next to him, but he didn't move a muscle as the creature smashed clean through the iron door and into the hallway.

"You should be thanking me; this is merciful compared to what I _could_ do to you."

A voice he recognised. He spun around multiple times, but no one was near him. It was deep, soothing, yet cold towards him.

"Espio?" He questioned, but he got no response. The growls continued to fill the corridor, until his chameleon companion filled his ears again.

"Soon you will know and only then will you see."

"Espio, please-" He was cut off.

"You will not get out unscathed!" He shook within his fur at how harsh his voice was. Did he hate him? If so, why? Upon remembering the note and lighter, Shadow shakily picked them up and read.

'_We continued to walk through the now empty halls. We were both silent. I kept on thinking about Tails and Cream. How on Mobius did we not notice them disappear? I'm the Ultimate Lifeform!_

_How am I meant to keep my promise, when I can't even care for my own son and his two friends? Maybe I'm losing my touch.'_

Shadow continued to listen for footsteps, but he checked with his eyes just to be sure, fearing that his hearing would fail him as the note said it did before. The ebony mammal checked the cell the monster was in, but only found a lighter and a pot of oil before heading further down the corridor. Turning right again and down some more stone steps, he made it to storage.

The room was small, but well-lit. It had various items including lighters, oil and an odd glass jar, which Shadow thought could replace the chemistry pot, since it was blown up in the previous storage area. Deciding that nothing else interested him, He swiftly left…

*Growl*

…just to go back in when another monster was in the corridor in front.

"I'm getting so sick of this." He growled behind gritted teeth. Once the distant growling became nothing, Shadow left storage again and followed the signs back as best he could. They led him back to the tunnel he came in at and after going straight past it, he went up some stairs and into the kitchen.

It was a well-lit room, although the smell of more dead pigs distracted Shadow from the fire's soothing flame. There were various shelves with items of food including potatoes and bread, along with tables; one of which had another note.

'_The silence was beginning to bother me. I almost hoped that Espio would talk soon._

_Nothing had attacked us, which was very odd. I felt nervous and unsettled, but I made sure that Espio didn't notice._

_I slowed my pace a little until I was walking alongside him. I noticed the glance he gave me, but other than that, nothing. Could this situation be affecting him more than I thought? He was always one to be independent and that is a trait which could sometimes hurt him._

_I'm here for you, Espio… but I'm not sure if you're here for me.'_

After picking up another pot of oil next to the fire, Shadow stepped into the farther half of the kitchen only to be startled by a growl from outside of the door.

*Growl*

He effortlessly vaulted behind a large, wooden table and crouched down. The monster simply walked in as Shadow realised that he had left the door open. It walked around and appeared to study the kitchen as it stood still for several seconds. It then turned and left again, with its appearance still making Shadow uneasy. The hedgehog climbed out and made sure that the door was closed.

"_Don't do that again."_ He scolded himself, before approaching a barrel full of illuminous, green liquid. He recognised it from the Laboratory and knew that it was acid. Hoping that he could put it to good use, he got out the glass jar and carefully retrieved some, being sure that he didn't get any on himself. He handled the jar carefully, but his hand shook enough for a few drops to land on his arm. Shadow hissed as it burnt at his skin. He placed the pot on the floor and quickly got out some Laudanum.

"Ah!" He cried, as the pain only got more severe. It only lasted for a few seconds, but his arm bled where the skin had burned away and was very sore around it. Applying the Laudanum stung badly, but the injured hedgehog knew it would help him. "How can such a small amount do so much?" He questioned coldly as he saw the damage to his arm. At least it wasn't the same arm the killer flesh cut open all that time ago.

Ironically, Shadow found another bottle of Laudanum on a shelf next to the acid along with two more lighters on a separate shelf. He huffed at the bottle, as if it knew the mammal would mess up at some point. After that, he left, but now, he didn't know where to go.

The last thing he wanted was to be lost in the catacombs of stone corridors and wandering monsters, but he had to find some way of escape. He noticed one more corridor that headed left, which he hadn't been down yet, unfortunately, it was just a dead end. After some thought, Shadow refilled his lantern using three more pots of oil, and decided to head back in the direction of storage. On his way, he found another path which went left that he hadn't been down yet. It led to 3 cells; one at the end and one either side of him. Going right first, a different flashback appeared.

* * *

"_Help! Somebody! Get me out of here!" Charmy pleaded, but no one friendly was around._

"_Zip it, you little pipsqueak! No one is going to save you down here, at least not yet."_

"_Screw you! Shadow and Espio will tear you apart for what you've done!" He yelled harshly at him._

"_Perhaps, but I could tear you apart right now at the touch of a button, so I suggest you be on your best behaviour!"_

* * *

"Charmy…" Shadow whispered before picking up two lighters and a pot of oil from both cells and heading into the third to find a note.

'_Every time I glanced at him, I saw determination bordering on rage. I understood how he felt, but I wasn't sure if it was aimed purely at Eggman._

_I still blame myself for this happening, but I didn't want Espio to turn against me. If Charmy, Tails and Cream are to be saved, assuming they are also with him, then we have to stick together no matter how bleak things look.'_

The hedgehog took the note and was about to leave…

*Growl*

…when a monster wandered around the corner at the end. Shadow slowly backed up and closed the door as carefully and silently as he could. After a few minutes, he decided that it had moved on and chose to do the same.

He continued and turned left and left again, but was forced to stop at a barred gate. It had a worn padlock, but Shadow knew how to deal with it. He tried the hammer and chipper, but to no avail. He thought for a second before remembering the acid.

With an irritated grunt, he carefully poured the corrosive substance on the lock.

*Growl*

The fur on his back stood up when he heard the growl right behind him. His eyes shot back to see a monster wander from where he had come from and spot him. With panic, Shadow slammed the hammer onto the lock, causing it to break off. He flung the gate open and ran for the door behind it. While it was heavy, Shadow used his new found determination to get through it, escaping the creature's grasp yet again.


	9. The Nightmare that Followed

**It's that time again! Welcome back, everyone! How have you all been? It's been a stressful week, but what week isn't, right?**

**On a side note, I got an Espio plush! That may not be a big thing to the rest of you, but Espio has been my all-time favourite character since I was little. So this, to me at least, is freaking awesome! He's sat next to Shadow on top of the snake tank, for obvious reasons.**

**The chameleon, snake and fish are doing fine. Zeus is actually shedding again, his eyes are really cool and really creepy at the same time, since they're completely white.**

**Other than that, no real news on my end, so I'll stop chatting and let you read in peace.**

**See you all next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

As soon as the natural light reached his face, the exhausted mammal fell to his knees and nearly broke down out of relief. He was indeed out of the prison, free from the dark corridors, but it wasn't over yet.

He now felt that he could find his way back to normal civilisation, but it soon hit him how far down he was when his eyes travelled upwards. He was in a huge cylindrical room, where natural light was flowing in from far above. In the centre was a platform, and a ladder which could take him up to it, as long as he got it down first. He took a final breath of 'fresh' air before walking into another flashback.

* * *

"_Dammit… which way now?" Shadow asked._

"_You pick." Espio replied, his voice lacking motivation._

"_You're not helping, Espio."_

"_Is that so? Well then 'leader', how can I be helpful to you?" Sudden sarcasm could be heard and he felt himself forcing back anger._

"_Look, I know we're both stressed, but arguing isn't going to solve anything." He felt a little strange being the sudden peacekeeper, but in order to make any progress, he had to be, regardless of whether he fit the occupation or not. Espio gave a heavy sigh._

"_I just cannot help thinking that Eggman has us in the palm of his hand. That we are just a part of his game that he has already planned out."_

"_Then we shall play it and we shall win."_

* * *

Shadow found the lever which would pull the ladder down, but it was stuck and the hedgehog, despite his efforts, couldn't dislodge it. He found a nearby brick and threw it, hoping that it would solve his problem; it didn't and, with a grunt, knew he had to find another way.

He checked a large door nearby, his hand hesitated as he was convinced that more of the flesh will manifest upon it. Luckily though, the door simply wouldn't open and the beast didn't appear.

A tunnel was on the opposite side with stairs going down. Unfortunately, the rest of the stairs were flooded so he swiftly returned, but not before noticing a pipe that was leaking oil. Upon further inspection, it was too thick for his lantern, but perhaps it could be of some other use. He filled the glass jar with the blackened liquid and poured it on both sides of the lever, as if to grease it. The lever then loosened and was able to be pulled down. The ladder lowered until it got stuck on a pipe.

"_Who the hell put that there?"_ He wondered, but he saw that the pipe was bent by the impact. Shadow then repeated the motion until it was damaged enough to allow the ladder to lower fully.

Once at the top, only one door was reachable out of the three; the one ahead. However, there were two bridges, which needed to be lowered in order to reach the other two. As he walked to the first door, he noticed two long levers. The one on the right worked fine, lowering the right side bridge steadily, while the left one didn't work at all. With another grunt, he entered the Control Room.

* * *

The area was large and split into several rooms, each having its own type of machinery. The first two doors he came across seemed mirrored. They both had three weights on chains, with wheels that controlled how high they were. The one on the right had the first weight being hung the lowest, the second being hung the highest and the third in between. The left room had all three on the floor.

Shadow assumed that this was what powered the lever outside and memorised the three weights so that he could mimic them in the left room. The room rumbled at first, but then the machinery could be heard. He left the room and found a heavy door with a wheel next to it. The wheel raised the door, but it wasn't strong enough to keep it there and so it slowly descended. Upon looking around, Shadow piled two boxes, one on top of the other in order to stop the door and allow him to crouch through as much as he pleased.

Once through, he noticed a similar layout with a door on his right and left and a third ahead. He went left first to notice a huge metal cylinder protruding out of the floor. There were three levers nearby, which Shadow wasn't sure about. Once in the right room, he saw that the cylinder wasn't sticking out and was level with the floor. He looked at the levers, which were arranged differently to the others. One up, two down and one up. He memorised the pattern and mimicked it in order to get the machine working.

"Shadow, is that you? What are you doing?" Espio's voice invaded his ears.

"E-Espio?" Shadow stuttered. He got no answer and was trying to figure out if it was real or a hallucination.

He ventured into the third room to see pipes on the wall to his right and several gaps where pipes should be to his left. The hedgehog remembered seeing several pipes scattered around the rooms and quickly went to search for them. As he did so, he found a pot of oil, a lighter, a wooden crank, which he had no idea what to do with, and a note.

'_I couldn't help but listen in as the two intruders were on the verge of an argument, but they settled it, much to my disappointment. I've always wanted to see those two fight. Shadow would probably kill him, just to feel horribly guilty afterwards. Now that would be something to watch!_

_I've been keeping an eye on all four of them. Tails and Cream somehow wandered off, but my robots will deal with them soon enough. They don't interest me anyway._

_The other two do.'_

Shadow gave a quick growl at the note, as if growling to Eggman himself.

There were three pipes, which Shadow easily found on the floors of the rooms. Once he carried them back, he had to arrange them correctly onto the wall. It wasn't overly difficult, with few places that all three could go without hindering another. A cog wheel above him began to turn, which let him know that he had done what was needed. Shadow quickly went back into the Cistern Entrance and lowered the remaining bridge.

It descended about half way until it suddenly stopped. Shadow's patience was wearing thin and he climbed down the ladder to find a solution.

"Perhaps now this will work." Shadow said as he picked up the same brick from before. He took it with him back up the ladder and threw it so that it would land on the bridge. To his surprise, the impact dislodged the chain and the bridge fully lowered. "Well then…" The mammal commented, being proud of his work. Of the two newly available paths, he chose to go right and into the Cistern.

* * *

Water. It was the first thing he noticed and the first thing which made his mind shrivel up and cry.

"No… not this shit again." Shadow growled quietly, hoping to not disturb anything which could potentially be in here. The mammal was sure to stay on the raised walkways as much as he could and only go into the water if he absolutely had to. The path right was the closest, so Shadow decided to navigate his way there first.

Annoyingly, some of the walkways had collapsed and Shadow had to jump across using the few bits of the path that remained. He was lucky enough not to fall this time, but a sudden pebble fell into the water next to him.

"Fuck!" He yelled a bit too loud out of fright. Shadow cursed under his breath as he approached a valve with a note above it.

'_Espio seemed to calm after deciding which way to go. Even when more robots jumped down, we handled them with ease and dispatched them within minutes._

_Suddenly, we heard gunshots. They were incredibly faint, but to me, they were unmistakable; assault rifles, fully automatic and deadly. We were about to run back to see what was going on, but a door suddenly slammed in front of us. It was then that I realised that Espio was right. Eggman had been watching us the entire time. He knew where we were going and what we were doing._

_I don't think I've ever hated someone this much.'_

A sign above the valve said 'Redirect Sewer Water'. He could only assume that it meant the water that flooded the tunnel and turned the wheel until the entire Cistern shook.

All the torches blew out from a huge gust of wind, meaning that Shadow had to use his lantern. He wasn't at all concerned by this now, especially after he found a lighter and a pot of oil in a small chest. There was plenty of oil now to last him a little while.

Shadow went back the way he came and ventured to the path which was opposite the exit. Three steam outlets turned on and off at regular intervals. The steam was boiling and the hedgehog knew how badly burns could hurt. He carefully timed it and walked past each pipe quickly. He made it to a valve at the end, which turned the steam off completely, stopping the chance of him getting burned on the way back. The winding path led to another valve and another note.

'_He's trapped us! The bastard trapped us!_

_Not only did he shut the door behind us, but he shut the one in front as well. I was about to lose it until Espio noticed a vent in the ceiling. I mentioned about his claustrophobia and asked if he would be alright._

_He told me that while he was nervous, he knew I wouldn't leave him._

_Even little comments like that make me smile. Damn, he can be cute sometimes.'_

The hedgehog smirked before turning the wheel next to him, which resulted in another gust of wind and darkness. He backtracked and realised that he had to wade through a large portion of the water to get to the next area. After three very deep breaths, he ran. About half way across, and his heart raced at an unworldly gargle from behind him. He cursed frantically and didn't dare to look back. Shadow tripped up the stairs because he was running so quickly, but at least he was out of the water. His fur was wet again, which only weighed him down like drenched clothing, but he still continued until a bridge, which was chained up, halted his progress.

His eyes scanned the ground until he found a small rock. The hedgehog aimed it precisely and threw it at the chain, thus breaking it and allowing the bridge to fall. The impact was loud and echoed throughout the Cistern. Whatever was in the water certainly would have heard it. After some more rock hopping, Shadow made it to the final valve and note, plus a pot of oil behind some boxes.

'_We crept through the vents as quietly as we could, unsure whether Eggman could see us while we were in here. Every opening we passed, we checked to make sure that Charmy, Tails and Cream weren't in the room._

_The whole place was a maze. It's not as if we knew our way around._

_Another opening was about to pass underneath us, but I peered over to see if there was anything down there._

_I raised a brow when I saw another vent opening in the floor. I was about to shrug it off and move on when I saw a red laser point upwards from the other vent. I jumped back as a flurry of bullets shot up into the vent._

_Espio held me tightly while I was too shocked to move. I couldn't believe I was nearly shot, nearly even killed. At least Espio is good at comforting. He kept his hold on me until I had calmed down._

_I knew he wouldn't leave me.'_

Once the wind had calmed after turning the third and final valve, Shadow topped up his lantern as he began to head for the exit. He approached the steps that he scurried up before, and could hear the distinct hisses of the water monster. He knew it was there and now he had to run through the water again, and there were no distractions this time. Thankfully though, the stairs leading to the walkway were right around the corner meaning that Shadow would only be in the water for a second, but he didn't care. He continued running until he made it to the door.

* * *

He breathed heavily once he was back in the Cistern Entrance. It wasn't as bad as the Prison, but it wasn't exactly a pleasant experience. There was only one door left and Shadow wasted no time in heading into the Morgue.

* * *

His mind screamed when he saw the familiar stone on the floors and walls. It looked exactly like the Prison and Shadow immediately associated it with bad luck and inhuman monsters. He crouched low, as if it was instinct, and moved into another flashback.

* * *

"_Are you ok?" Espio whispered into his ear._

"_That bastard has thought of everything. Motion- sensing turrets that fire upwards into the vents?! That could've been my end!" Shadow trembled after the shock._

"_I know, and that terrifies me, but we still have to get to Charmy. He still needs us. Tails and Cream as well." Espio reminded him._

"_I know, but we need to keep an eye out for everything. Trust nothing." Shadow warned him._

"_Except you." Espio whispered warmly._

"_And you." Shadow replied._

* * *

There were two paths. He headed straight to begin with, as it led to a small room. The downside however, was that it was full of human remains.

"What the?!" Before he could react fully, he was consumed by white.

* * *

"_Someone let us out of here!"_

"_It's no use, Tails." A high-pitched voice told him. "We're stuck here."_

"_Hey, don't give up Cream. I'm sure Shadow and Espio will save us." He replied._

"_But they've gone to help Charmy."_

"_I know, but they wouldn't leave us. I know they wouldn't."_

* * *

A second flashback began immediately after the first. He didn't know they could occur back to back.

* * *

"_It's been a while, hasn't it?" Cream began._

"_True, but this base could be huge. It may take them a long time."_

"_I hope they find us soon. I don't want to stay here." Cream saddened and her voice showed it._

"_Me neither Cream, me neither."_

* * *

"That was… odd." Shadow stated once he had returned. He found a lighter, Laudanum and a strange copper tube, before heading to the only other room.

As he walked, he felt a sense of dread and noticed his vision go slightly dark, before returning to normal. He hadn't felt that since he first woke up here and he could only hope that he didn't pass out now.

He came to a wooden door, which led into a small room. It had shelves, two more doors and a table with a naked, human corpse.

"Ugh… pleasant." He commented sarcastically before looking around. A lighter and note were found on the shelves. It explained how there was a poisonous fungus in the sewers and that a vaccine was being worked on. Shadow became concerned. He somehow knew that he would have to go to the sewers at some point and he could only hope that he wouldn't become fatally ill.

The next thing the hedgehog searched through was a desk in the corner between the two doors. There was Laudanum in the bottom drawer, a lighter in the middle, a note on top and another strange, cylinder object in the side compartment. He checked the note first. It explained how a vaccination was found and how the process was difficult. It went on to explain that injecting vaccinated blood would serve as a suitable shield for a short time. Shadow lifted his head up and slowly turned to the corpse on the table.

"No… fucking… way." He growled before checking the cylinder.

* * *

"_I knew you; at least I thought I knew you. I have never seen you like this; then again, such an event has never happened before. I miss you, yet you are right there. I miss the things you provided me. I truly took you for granted, but as fate would have it, I took you away from myself."_

* * *

It was these cylinders that intrigued him the most. They gave away so little, yet so much. Shadow was always left wanting to know more. What did they mean?

He glanced through the other two doors, but quickly closed them both when he saw piles of corpses in both rooms. He cursed some more as he approached the one on the table. If he really had to inject himself, he needed to figure out the quickest and least disturbing way of doing so.

Shadow searched through the items he had collected and got out three that he thought would be useful; the hollow needle from the Archive Tunnels, the carpenters drill from Storage and the copper tube that he found here. He studied the body and decided that the skull would be the best place to retrieve the blood as it would cause the least amount of mess. He gripped the drill tightly and was about to pierce it when a familiar deep voice spoke to him.

"I hear you breathing, Shadow. Do you hear me? Do you remember yet?"

"Remember what?" Shadow replied, but again he got nothing in return. With some added frustration, he stabbed the drill into the skull and turned it until blood was spilling out. The drill broke afterwards, only annoying Shadow further. He got the copper tube and stabbed it where the wound was. Now the blood was flowing out the end of the tube. All he needed was something to pierce his own skin; the hollow needle. He attached it to the tube and braced himself.

"Sweet Chaos." He groaned, before forcing his arm onto the needle. His entire body stiffened and his eyes closed tightly, not wanting to see the sight. His teeth grinded in order to cope with the stinging as he pulled the needle out of him. His stomach turned into a washing machine at the thought of what he had just done, but did he really have a choice? Not wanting to think anymore, he was about to leave when an alien growl came from the other side.

*Groan*

It began smashing on the door and Shadow was forced to hide in one of the corpse rooms. He stared at the wall, not wanting to look at anything else and listened to the deep groans the monster was making. In no time at all, the door was completely destroyed, allowing the unworldly beast to wander in. Its limbs screeched as it moved. It came close to the door as its groans became noticeably louder. Shadow was ready to run, but it soon moved away and left the area. With a sigh of relief, Shadow exited the room and went to exit the Morgue altogether.

* * *

Shadow pondered what to do now, but then remembered the flooded tunnel. He went to check if the water had drained and thankfully, it had. As he went down the stairs, he could feel the air become thicker and it made it harder to breathe. He could only hope that the horrid injection worked as he entered the Sewer.


	10. The Loss You Gained

**It's finally Saturday again! This week felt very slow, not sure why, but it just did.**

**I hope all of you have had a good week! This chapter is a good one, I'm excited for you to read it. A lot of stuff is revealed, which I'm obviously not going to spoil here. :)**

**I don't have anything exciting to share this week, which is usually how it goes. Zeus was kind enough to wake me up in the middle of the night last night. He's shed at least though, but now Sage is shedding and running around constantly. He's a bit more sociable than most chameleons, but only on his terms. :3**

**Anyway, I'm going to let him out, so that he can run around the room. You can read peacefully in the meantime. :)**

**I'll see you all again next Saturday!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

The smell was horrendous. Granted, it was far better than the stench of rotting flesh in the Wine Cellar, but it wasn't exactly pleasant. Shadow walked through a barred gate and climbed down a rusted ladder into the sewer tunnels. The air was stained green by the fungus, which made the visibility worse.

"Oh no…" Shadow whispered when he saw that there was a good amount of water still in the tunnels. He thought that they would've been completely drained, but that clearly wasn't the case.

One foot was placed carefully with the other following close behind. Very little noise was made as he crept through the water. He hoped with everything he had, the water dweller wasn't down here.

*Groan*

Suddenly, a figure could be seen walking from left to right at the end of the entrance tunnel. Shadow squinted and to his horror, saw that it was another of the split-headed creatures. He knew that it was too far away for it to see him, so he didn't hide. Instead, he just sat there and watched as it screeched past. His vision began to blur further the more he looked at it, apparently his mind couldn't handle the sight well.

Once it was clear. Shadow moved forward and noticed a spinning metal wheel. He briefly wondered what it was for before looking left and right. Left seemed to be the best option as the monster walked in the other direction.

He came to three routes, but only one of them wasn't blocked by a barred gate, which in turn forced him to go right. Shadow soon came to a room with machinery that was deafening, especially with Shadow's sensitive ears. Aside from a barrel of oil, which again contained very little, there were two levers. Shadow wondered if adjusting them would make the machine quieter so that his current headache wouldn't get any worse.

He began with the right-most lever and pulled it to the left. The machine got even louder, which made him pull it to the right. The noise level lowered and he went to the left lever. He pulled it right thinking that it would lower the noise just like the other one, but to his dismay, it got louder. Once it was pulled left, the noise finally became bearable. His breathing was heavy to cope with the headache as he left.

*Groan*

Only a few seconds after leaving, a deep groan came from the bottom of the stairs. Shadow knew what was coming and retreated back into the room to hide behind a pipe. It must have come right up to the door as its groans sounded as if they were right next to him. The creature didn't stick around long though and left to search somewhere else.

The hedgehog made it back to the spinning wheel to notice that it was spinning significantly slower. He approached it and was thrown into another flashback.

* * *

"_Cream, wake up." Tails whispered. "Robots." He said bluntly. He could hear them approaching._

"_What do you want?!" Cream yelled at them. Shadow could hear a metal door open and one of them enter. "Ah!" She cried._

"_Let her go!" Tails yelled as he could be heard attacking the robot. He could hear the other one trying to restrain Tails, but he somehow broke free and helped Cream as well._

"_Thank you, Tails." She said warmly._

"_It's ok, but now we have to go and find the others." Tails told her._

"_Ok!" She chirped, before they both ran out of the room._

* * *

"At least they made it out." Shadow commented hoping that his own situation would have a similar outcome. He ventured down the other tunnel with just as much caution, only to come to a dead end and a loose pipe. Out of curiosity, the hedgehog moved the pipe up and down until the end snapped off.

"_Another weapon?"_ He thought as he took it with him.

Once back at the spinning wheel, Shadow had nowhere else to go, but soon thought of an idea. He got the pipe in his hand and timed himself. Once at the right moment, he placed the pipe within the wheel to stop it spinning, thus allowing Shadow to crawl through. After a quick grin, the mammal pressed on. The tunnel was blocked by another barred gate, but there was a separate path, which led to a room.

Shadow gasped at the sight which lay before him. Once the door was open, he saw the flesh of the creature all over the place. Within it was one of the monsters; it had been brutally torn apart. The hedgehog was lost for words. Did the flesh do this? All this time he thought that some pathetic tissue could never end a life, but the evidence was scattered in front of him.

"You had better watch yourself, Shadow. They are all after you."

"Espio…" Shadow whispered with his voice sounding uncharacteristically sad.

Ironically, a bottle of Laudanum was found in the corner, but that was it. Shadow really had nowhere else to go. He decided to go back, in case there was another tunnel that he'd missed, but he stopped in his tracks when the creature returned, tearing down a barred gate in its path.

*Groan*

While he now had somewhere else to venture, he first had to hide because this time, it wasn't just going to stop in front of the door. Shadow fled to the back corner of the room and stayed up against the wall. He didn't look at it in case it looked back. If he was spotted now, that would be the end of him.

It smashed through the door in one clean hit, leading Shadow to imagine how quickly it could tear him in half. Somehow, it didn't go to the back half of the room and only searched the front before leaving, allowing Shadow to catch his breath and continue where it had come from.

*Groan*

It wasn't long before he heard its groans again. Shadow looked around, but couldn't see it anywhere, making him feel a whole new level of nervousness. He travelled to the right, but hid behind a pipe when he found it. The creature was merely stood there with its back to him. He assumed that it was guarding the path that was in front of it. The hedgehog waited, hoping that it would eventually wander off, but this time, it didn't. The mammal now had to think of a way of getting it to move without it noticing him. He slowly backed away and searched the water for a rock of some kind. Once finding one that he deemed suitable and a bottle of Laudanum to go with it, he went to the path to the left and readied himself.

"1… 2… 3!" He counted and threw the rock just in front of him. It made a loud splash upon impact, which he was sure would distract the beast. Shadow snuck back around the way he came to see that the monster had indeed moved, making the path clear for him.

He chuckled quietly to himself as he swiftly made it up the stairs and out of the water, but as he came to a door, a disturbing sound caught his attention.

His ears perked up, he could hear distant screeching and it was getting louder. Shadow's eyes shot open at the realisation and he ran as fast as he could, shutting the door behind him. The monster was having none of it as it tore through the door and gave chase. Shadow came to a second door, which he opened and closed as quickly as he could. Again, this didn't slow the creature down. A light was at the end of the tunnel in the form of an escape ladder. Shadow leapt for his life, just dodging a swing of its lethal arm. He grabbed onto it and climbed at a ridiculous speed. He looked back to see the monster growling angrily at him before accepting defeat and walking away. Not wanting to tempt fate, the hedgehog headed straight up and didn't stop, regardless of the distant monster's cries suddenly bearing down upon him.

He collapsed against the well the ladder was in before it collapsed. Shadow shivered with cold as his fur was again drenched. The mammal had nothing to dry himself off with and the lantern provided little heat. For now, he was forced to endure it in this new environment. He had no idea where he was now, but he saw four doors around him. One was locked, the second had a rock slide with a lighter, the third was a dark corridor and the fourth led to some levers, both of which didn't work. It also had a barrel of oil, which had very little, a lighter and a note.

'_We could hear very distant screams. It was very hard to tell whose they were, but we were forced to assume that it was Charmy._

_We rushed through the vent as quick as we could, but with the unusually high amount of sentry turrets, it proved to be very challenging._

_This place was huge, there's no way Eggman, even with all the robots in the world could've built this place in a day. My gut tells me that this base has been here a lot longer.'_

Shadow took a minute, just to think. He had so many mixed emotions that it made his headache worse. He still didn't know exactly who Espio was, like he did with Charmy, not to mention that he couldn't remember the rest of his life. Would he ever get it back? Was any of it real?

The hedgehog could only sigh with the amount of unanswered questions. He left the lever room and headed down the dark corridor to see where it led. A lightless and eerie spiral staircase was soon in front of him and he couldn't help but feel very on edge has he descended. Something about going down had unsettled him. Once at the bottom, he searched under the stairs only to find three lighters before continuing on.

He was about to enter another corridor when more voices returned.

* * *

"_You can hear that to right?" Espio asked the hedgehog._

"_Yes I can. Who is it?" Shadow replied._

"_I can't tell, but if it is him then we had better get going." Shadow felt himself nod before continuing to crawl. "We-we will get to him in time, right?" The hedgehog turned back to look at Espio._

"_Yes, we will." He said sternly._

* * *

He saw a door with a sign saying 'Laboratory' to his right. It was boarded up, forcing Shadow left into a large, lit room. He looked over the banister and gasped at the sight of someone tied up to the ceiling by their wrists. His breathing quickened further when he noticed the black and yellow stripes and two antennae.

"Cha-Charmy?" He stuttered, not wanting to believe it. Time seemed to stop as he walked down the wooden steps towards him. His head hung low and he wasn't moving. His body, while having the same features, looked vastly different. His frame was so thin that his ribs were clearly visible. His jacket and helmet were nowhere to be seen as well as his shoes and gloves. Suddenly, the malnourished bee looked up as Shadow moved closer. His dull eyes stared at the frightened hedgehog and his mouth hung open.

"Help me… Pull the switch." His small voice wheezed. His mouth didn't move yet he could talk, but for now, Shadow didn't question it and pulled a small lever, which was on a machine next to him. All of a sudden, Charmy's voice was amplified and Shadow could hear him a lot better. The bee no longer struggled as he spoke. "Thank you, you have my gratitude." The hedgehog was speechless. He couldn't move, but Charmy didn't seem to notice. "My name is Charmy, who might you be?" This saddened Shadow deeply. Could Charmy not remember either?

"You… you don't know who I am?" The mammal asked.

"Wait… Shadow?" Charmy replied after hearing his voice.

"Charmy?"

"Is that-is that really you?" His voice seemed to be full of life, despite how his body looked. "I can't believe it!" The bee exclaimed. "Uncle Shadow! What are you doing here?"

"I wish I could answer that, but I don't know. Do you know where we are?" Shadow questioned, hoping that the bee would have some information.

"Not exactly, if that's what you're asking. All I do know is that I've been here for a long time." Shadow raised a brow.

"How long is 'long'?"

"Centuries."

"What?!"

"I know it sounds ridiculous, but it's true. I've been trapped here ever since I died." Shadow's entire world came to a standstill yet again with two words echoing in his head. His stomach sunk and he felt an enormous lump in his throat.

"Ever since you… what?" His voice was significantly quieter, almost a whisper. With a saddened voice, the bee replied.

"Ever since I died, Shadow… I'm dead."

"No… no you can't be… How?!"

"I was killed in battle. My memory is a little hazy, but I remember you being there and Espio and Eggman."

"Do you remember Espio?" Shadow suddenly asked.

"Of course I do. Why?"

"Ever since waking up here, I've forgotten everything. Over time, I managed to remember who you are, but nothing else." The hedgehog told him.

"Not even Espio?"

"Bits and pieces, but not entirely." Shadow tried showing him the note from his previous self. "Here, look at this."

"Uh, Shadow… I'm blind. That's why I didn't know it was you until you spoke." Feeling embarrassed, the mammal apologised before reading the note to him.

The bee took a minute to think about what he had just heard. "If it makes you feel any better, you're not dead, just trapped."

"But why?"

"My best guess with everything that I've learned is that you're here out of grief."

"Grief?" Shadow repeated.

"Over losing a son." He finished. Shadow slowly sat on one of the steps behind him and held his head. "That might be why Espio is here to and why you need to help him. He probably took it a lot worse."

"At least this note makes a lot more sense now." An uneasy chuckle followed. "How did it happen?"

"I assume you mean my death. I remember the three of us fighting Eggman-"

"Who is he exactly?" Shadow interrupted.

"An evil scientist who wants to take over the world. He likes to kill Mobians, which is what we are." Charmy explained.

"Ah…" Shadow replied before allowing the bee to continue.

"Anyway, I remember being in the air at the time before something hit me. It was right through the chest. I don't know what it was, but it was sharp and quick. The last thing I remember is slamming into the ground with your voices fading away."

"How do you know you're dead and I'm not?"

"I was waiting for you to ask that." Charmy admitted. "Whilst being here, many other spirits have passed through, one of which was named Maria." A sharp pain ran through Shadow's mind at the mention of her name. He remembered not only her, but so much more. The events of the ARK, Black Doom, Gerald, Eggman, Espio, everything! One thing that still remained a mystery however, was Charmy's death.

"Maria was here?" He whispered, but Charmy still heard him due to his heightened hearing.

"Yeah, her spirit wanders around trying to help those that are still lost." He paused and saddened. "She couldn't help me… I died far too soon, hence why I'm here. This is Purgatory, Shadow. I guess the afterlife wasn't ready for me yet." Nervous laughter escaped him. He wanted to lighten the situation, but he knew there was no point.

"Is there… any way for me to help you?" Shadow asked.

"Maria told me about a potion of some sort. I can't remember exactly how it was made, this was a long time ago, but there are three key components." The bee told him.

"I'll find them and I'll get you out of here." Shadow said with sudden determination.

"You'd really do that? The ingredients are hard to find and you may still be trapped here and-"

"I said I'm getting you out." Shadow replied sternly. "You're my son, Charms. There is no way I'm leaving you here. If I can't bring you with me then I am letting you rest." One solitary tear ran down the hedgehog's cheek, but a small smile accompanied it. Charmy tried to small also, but it was difficult in his husk of a body.

"Thank you, uncle Shadow." He said warmly. "Do you have a Chaos Emerald on you?"

"Uh… no."

"You're going to need one. I know there is one here, but it broke into several pieces and has been separated into the torture rooms."

"Torture rooms?" Shadow questioned feeling uneasy.

"Yeah, you see those two sealed doors over there?" He turned right to see a barred gate and two heavy doors on either side. "They lead to the Choir and the Transept. There are three torture rooms in each; I believe there are six pieces of the emerald. You get the idea, but I warn you, there's 'something' lurking in the Choir. I have no idea what it is."

"Well I do. I've ran into all sorts of shit just to get here. I'll be fine, don't worry." He was about to head off when he remembered something.

"How do I get the doors open?"

"There are two levers upstairs."

"They don't work." Shadow told him.

"There's a hatch above that table there. One of the cogs might have slipped out of place. Simply put it back." The bee explained. Shadow smiled warmly even though he couldn't see it.

"Thank you, Charmy."

"You're welcome." With that, Shadow grabbed the pot of oil that was on the table and stood on it. He reached up and flew the hatch open to reveal several cog wheels, one of which was lower than the others. Once putting it back, all the cogs began to turn meaning that Shadow had to head back upstairs. He ran as fast as he could, even skated, now remembering that his shoes could do that. Now that he had a purpose, a life, a son to rescue, he was determined to not stop until he was at peace. The two levers worked perfectly and Shadow was quick to head back down.


	11. Chosen One

**Hello! Arby here with Chapter 11 for you!**

**We're actually getting close to the end of this now. I had a blast writing it, so I hope it was a good read. :) But it's not the end yet, so I'll save the speeches until then.**

**Poor Sage had to go to the vets yesterday. I've never had to do that before, so I lost a good amount of sleep in the past two days. Luckily, he's perfectly fine! :D Still, that was one hell of a scare though. I'll never forget it. Zeus and Jak are fine also. :)**

**That's all I've got for now. Enjoy the chapter and I'll see you again next week!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

"Shadow, you have gone too far! I have to stop you! You cannot proceed any further! You will fall here!" Espio's voice screamed at him. Shadow fell to his knees; he assumed his hate was out of pain for their loss. He had to help him. He refilled his lantern again, leaving him with four remaining pots, before heading back to Charmy.

"You got the doors open? Awesome, Shadow! I knew you could do it!" Charmy praised as he passed by. Heading right first, Shadow found a small study room. There was a lighter and Laudanum on the shelves, another lighter in a drawer under the desk, a cylinder object in the side compartment and a note on top. Shadow touched the object first.

* * *

"_I could continue my life just like everyone else, but I am different. They all have an end; they get that one certainty, which I have avoided._

_With me, my end must be a choice. Time will not take me therefore I am stuck in a life created unnaturally. I could end it at any point, but I chose to stay for you, but with this weight on me now, will you be the one to crush me?"_

* * *

Even with the majority of his memories returned, he still wondered what these small flashbacks meant. He could now feel the extreme sadness that accompanied them. Was this his grief? Is this what trapped him here? He snapped out of it when he saw the note and ran back to Charmy upon seeing that it was about a tonic made up of three ingredients.

The mammal read it aloud and Charmy confirmed his suspicions.

"Excellent! Ok, you need to pay attention. There is a gate somewhere, it will send me to the afterlife, but as you can see, I can't get there on my own. That tonic will allow you to take me with you, without taking my life. The only way to do that is… by cutting off my head." Charmy hesitated, knowing Shadow wouldn't take the news well.

"Are you crazy?!" Shadow shouted.

"It's the only way, Shadow! I wouldn't ask this of you if it wasn't important!" Charmy pleaded and Shadow soon calmed.

"So, this will let me cut off your head without taking your life?"

"Yep, but there's a barrier stopping anyone from reaching the gate. Only a Chaos Emerald is strong enough to breach it, but it will only be down for a short time. Get the pieces, but do not mend it yet. Get me first and take me with you."

"Understood."

"Good luck, Shadow." He went back the way he came and past the study before reaching the Choir Entrance.

* * *

It was one simple corridor that had two doors, one on either side of him and some stairs with a heavy door at the end. He went left first and found a table with a note upon it. The moment he touched it, his vision began to fail and he collapsed onto the stone.

* * *

_He could hear running. His breathing was fast as was the male behind him. Another Chaos Blast got the door open and they sprinted onward. They both collectively gasped at the sight, which Shadow currently couldn't see._

"_Let him go!" Shadow yelled angrily._

"_Look out!" Espio yelled from behind him. Bullets could be heard flying in every direction as he could feel his body dodge them._

"_You will pay for everything you have done!" Shadow continued, but the fire did not cease. He tried to fight back, but then everything went still. Silent. He could feel his eyes widen and his stomach drop._

"_NOOOO!" Two distraught males cry out. "Charmy!"_

* * *

His bottom lip began to tremble as he rocked back and forth in the corner. His son was dead.

"Eggman." He spat with venom in his words. His mind pictured the many ways he would kill him, assuming he wasn't dead already. Rage now fuelled his movements as he searched both rooms only to find two lighters. He then stormed down the stairs and into the Choir's Main Hall.

* * *

This room stood out vastly from any of the others he'd been to.

It was enormous and was filled with a mysterious, red fog. He couldn't see very far as a result, meaning he couldn't keep an eye out for the 'something' that was lurking in here. Shadow used his old rule of staying low and listening before deciding to stay near the wall and head right, so that he wouldn't wander in circles.

"What are my intentions, Shadow? Freedom from this never-ending pain. We were in this together, but you thought you knew better and left me in the dust. You ran when things got bitter and now look. This could have been avoided, you know. You caused this and now you shall pay for it."

"Nothing you say can deter me, Espio, I will find you and I will help you." Knowing he wouldn't get an answer, he continued across a bridge.

*Groan*

"I knew it was you." Shadow mumbled as he heard the creature behind him. Forcing himself to keep looking forward, Shadow continued ignoring the monster for now. Soon, a separate path headed right, which led to an iron door. Shadow knew just by looking at it that it was one of the torture rooms. He took a long breath and went inside.

Shadow entered a room where a large, wooden wheel stood at the far end. Just looking at it caused him a headache, but a faint purple light in the corner caught his attention.

"One down, five to go." He told himself as he picked up the piece and swiftly left.

With two more rooms to search, he headed back to the main path and kept going right. As he was about to move onward, another groan came from… somewhere.

*Groan*

Shadow panicked not knowing where it was and hid next to one of the huge pillars that were in the room. His face remained determined as he listened for its movement. Screeching could soon be heard heading in his direction and he froze as it walked past him. Shadow forced his breathing to be slow, but his trembling made it difficult. It turned and walked past him again, this time walking in the direction that Shadow needed to go in.

He patiently waited until he could no longer hear its deep groans and decided to follow. Shadow peered round the corner first, hoping to see it and hoping to not see it at the same time. Either way, he knew it would be no use because of the poor visibility.

After some distance crouch-walking, another path led off to the right and soon, to the second torture room. Before he went in, he came across a group of poisonous fungi with one in particular being much larger. He scrambled to get the note and reminded himself of the poison gland within it that would be used as a paralyzer for the tonic. The mammal tried to open it up, but he couldn't get a good grip on it. Remembering he still had the hammer and chipper from the Prison, he aimed it carefully and broke it open, revealing a large poison gland, which he took with him into the torture room.

This one contained a hollow bull made of iron. Shadow noticed the unlit fire underneath and could only imagine how they would torture someone with this thing. He looked around, wanting to get out as soon as possible, and found a lighter plus the second piece of the Chaos Emerald. His headache was quickly getting worse so he decided to make a swift retreat.

Continuing right, he soon came to a large gap. The red mist stopped him from seeing a bottom, but he knew he would never be able to cross it. On the other side, he saw two lanterns lighting up the door to the third torture chamber. Shadow was forced head back and then travel left from the exit.

*Groan*

On his way back, another groan came from in front of him and in the distance, he could see a faint silhouette heading his way. Shadow dove behind a nearby pillar and waited for the creature to pass by. It seemed to stick around longer this time as the hedgehog listened to its every move. It left eventually, allowing Shadow to keep going.

No more monsters appeared in his path and Shadow was able to make it to the third room with no obstacles.

Inside was a standing chamber. The hedgehog approached, only to have it suddenly burst open and a strong gust fly past him, strong enough to knock him onto his back.

"AH!" He screamed at the sudden jump. Shadow scrambled backwards and was about to run, but he knew another emerald piece was here. He spent a few minutes calming himself down before warily walking past it and finding the third piece. Once obtained, he kept his gaze upon it before running out of the room and out of the Choir altogether.

* * *

His sprint wouldn't halt until he returned to Charmy to see how he was doing.

"Hey Shadow." He greeted as he heard the hedgehog walk back into the room.

"Hey Charms." He returned letting him know that it was him and not some creature. "I got the three pieces from the Choir." He told him.

"Great job, Shadow! The last three should be in the Transept; I don't think there's anything in there, so you should be fine." Shadow nodded.

"How are you holding up?" The hedgehog asked.

"No different than how I've been in centuries. How about you?" He asked in return.

"A mix of things really. I still don't know what to make of this entire situation. Although one thing has been bothering me."

"What is it?"

"What the hell are these things?" He said pulling out a lighter.

"Uh Shadow?"

"Oh right… my apologies. It's a small cylinder thing that can light torches and lanterns." Shadow described.

"They're called tinderboxes, Shadow."

"Really?" Charmy chuckled at him.

"Yeah, what have you been calling them?"

"Lighters." Shadow told him, earning him a playful laugh from the insect.

"I can see why you'd call them that, but they're tinderboxes."

"Thanks, I'd better get going."

"Yeah, you don't have a lot of time if there really is something after you." Charmy reminded him.

"I forgot about that… I'll be back soon." Shadow reassured him before heading in the direction opposite to the Choir. He found another small room before the heavy door. This time it had a well with a pulley system above it, allowing various objects to be lowered and raised from it. Within the well, Shadow could hear the garbles of the creature, which he now knew was called a Kaernk from the note about the tonic. Not wanting to listen to it, he left the room and entered the Transept.

The atmosphere was creepy and unsettling. It was another large room, although nowhere near the size of the Choir's Main Hall. He could see the three doors at the end however; there was an iron, spiral staircase in the centre. Feeling curious, Shadow ventured up there first.

He found another study room. It was vastly fancier than the rest of the Transept and looked more like the previous Study which he went to. There was a tinderbox and a pot of oil on the shelf, another cylinder in the side compartment of the desk, some string and a note explaining the process of torture, which Shadow didn't read fully. His voice was heard again when he touched the cylinder.

* * *

"_What is it that you want from me? Is there nothing I can do to prove myself to you? I know things can't be the way they were, but they can be easier. Why won't you let me make it easier? You are only hurting yourself… yet you are hurting me as well."_

* * *

Shadow sighed, if Espio is as bad as he thought he was, then he knew there was little he could do. Nonetheless, he still had to try. Charmy was his priority now and he would save Espio as well, but only if he could.

He chose to take the string, thinking that he would need it and went back down and into the left-most torture room.

The corridor leading to the room was incredibly dark and Shadow had to use his lantern. The actual room was lit with a couple of torches. In the centre were restraints that were attached to a pulley system. A weight was on the floor. On the wall was a picture of the equipment being used. A woman was tied with her hands behind her back. The restraints would then pull her up whilst the weight was attached via her ankles. The pressure would cause her shoulders to snap. Shadow shuddered before looking in a closet to find the fourth piece of the emerald. With one last glance, he left and went into the centre torture room.

This room was a lot dimmer, being lit only by a single lantern on the ceiling. At the far end was a small, metal pyramid. The tip was incredibly sharp, yet there was no picture of it being used on the wall. Shadow was secretly thankful and remerged through some sacks in the corner and found an emerald piece underneath. He looked at it again before leaving and shuddered at a gruesome image that filled his head.

"One more." He told himself as went into the right-most torture room.

Sawing noises could be heard coming from the room and they got steadily louder as Shadow approached. He turned his lantern off, plunging himself into darkness. He looked through the bars in the door, but there was no one in there. A low growl was made in his throat before going in and looking around.

This one had by far the most blood, with a grate in the middle that had a pool of it underneath. Next to it was a large saw and on the wall was a picture, showing a man that had been hung upside down and was being sawn in half. His stomach struggled to take it and Shadow had to swallow down anything that was rising up. He picked up the last piece of the Chaos Emerald that was in some rope and left the room. Once the door was closed, he leaned against it to catch some air and remembered the tonic he was supposed to be gathering the ingredients for. He got the note out and looked at it in case he had forgotten anything.

He wiped his head of sweat when he realised he needed a tortured human's blood. Shadow had to go back in and retrieve a good amount because it contained vitae, which was needed for the tonic. Charmy was the only thing on his mind as he re-entered the room. Shadow knelt down and lifted the grate, but he couldn't reach far enough to get the blood. He then remembered the bit of string and tied it around the glass jar. The jar was then dipped into the blood and retrieved. Now with a migraine, Shadow quickly left the Transept and returned to Charmy.

* * *

On the way back, the distant creature's cries caused Shadow to fall to the ground clutching his head. They lasted for a few seconds, but they were much louder than before, whatever it was, it was closing in. Shadow rushed back to Charmy and explained it to him.

"Ok, what else do you need?" The bee asked quickly.

"Something called 'Tampter', which is in the secretion from the Kaernk." Shadow explained.

"The what?"

"It's a horrible water monster thing. It's completely invisible."

"Oh… I have no idea how you're going to get that, but until you do, I'm not going anywhere." Charmy said with concern.

"I know… hang in there, I'll figure something out." Shadow told him before moving through the barred gate into a room filled with cells, just like the ones in the Prison. He didn't bother looking in them for fear of it wasting what little time he had and instead went straight up some stairs to the second floor where he found a chunk of fresh meat.

"What the hell?" He pondered, but then came up with an idea. Shadow picked up the meat and raced to the well he had found earlier. He tied it to the small bit of rope hanging from the ceiling and lowered it down. The Kaernk thrashed violently in the water as it tore at the flesh. Shadow thought that it might jump out of the well altogether. Soon, the noises died down and Shadow was able to pull the rope back up. There wasn't a single bit of meat left. His mind imagined what he would've looked like had the Kaernk got a hold of him. The mammal untied the now slimy bone and took it with him.

"You were in a hurry." Charmy commented as he heard Shadow's footsteps run back into the room.

"I got the final component." He announced. "How do I make this thing?"

"Great! There's a Laboratory just up the stairs and straight ahead." Charmy informed.

"But it's boarded up. I can't get in."

"Oh…" Charmy's voice suddenly lacked the energy it had up until now.

"Don't worry, there's another door past the cell room over there. I'll go see if there's anything in there."

"That's the Chancel. Good idea. I'll see you soon." Shadow walked quickly back into the cell room and into the Chancel.

* * *

Shadow jogged up some stairs, but halted at some very deep groans that filled his ears. It wasn't a monster, these ones were different. They may have been from the thing that was hunting him, but he couldn't be sure. What he did know was that they had extinguished his confidence and he was now back to crouching as he got to the top of the stairs. There was a closed door at the top, which Shadow listened through first before opening. He crouched through to see nothing before moving forward. A few steps later and suddenly three of them appeared on his right and charged at him. Out of panic, Shadow tried his best to fend them off by punching and kicking, but it was no use as they quickly overwhelmed him.


	12. The Light of Tragedy

**Well, what can I say? It's been one hell of a ride with this one and a ride that I won't ever forget!**

**Writing this has been so much fun! Playing Amnesia alongside it has also been fun, even when I'm hiding in a dark prison cell! I actually thought I had two more chapters to go, apparently not. It's kind of bitter-sweet actually. I know I'm going to miss this story, but I hope it was worth the read!**

**I want to thank everyone who read, reviewed and stuck around even when the first few chapters were being rewritten. I look at it now and I'm glad I did that.**

**You are all awesome!**

**I hope this chapter is a good send off! A lot happens and I'm excited to see how you react! :)**

**I really want to say more, but I'd just end up rambling. So, I'm going to stop and let you all enjoy this as much as I did writing it!**

**I will see you all soon!**

**Arby xx**

* * *

How much time had passed? He couldn't tell as he awoke with a sharp pain and coldness to his chest. As he looked up from the ground, he saw one of the monsters watching over him from the other side of the cell bars. Once it saw that he was awake, it turned and left while Espio's voice filled his ears once more.

"Shadow, I do not know what to do with you, but I said I'd stop you and I did. Your actions were nothing short of a nuisance, but now you can sit here and think about what you've done. This is exactly what you deserve. Goodbye, hedgehog."

"No…" He groaned in pain as he struggled to stand. "Charmy… still needs me." Once on his feet, the mammal checked to see if he had some Laudanum. Surprisingly, he had all the items he had collected. One glance at his chest revealed why he was in so much pain.

Four slashes were clear and each of them stung horribly as he applied the Laudanum. He then looked around for any means of escape.

The door was obviously locked, so he scanned the wall for any weakness. He found nothing, but a pot of oil to begin with, but soon noticed a few bricks that were loose. The hammer and chipper proved to be handy yet again as he was able to make a gap in the wall. The gap however, wasn't big enough for him to fit through. He backed up and readied himself before charging and slamming through the wall. Thankfully, the bricks gave way and fell to the ground in the cell next to his. After coughing violently from his wound, Shadow got back up and left the cell as the door hadn't been locked, but unfortunately, the door leading out of the area had and the hedgehog now needed to find a key.

The Ultimate Lifeform searched all the cells as quickly as he could, but it wasn't until the third and final one where he found something useful. Apart from tinderboxes, Laudanum and oil, there was a note from a previous prisoner which commented about one of the guards dropping a key down the pipe. Without a second to waste, Shadow picked up a bucket, which he found in another cell, and filled it with water using the well in the centre of the room. Once filled, Shadow took the bucket to the pipe and poured the water down it which in turn, caused the key to flow out the other end for the hedgehog to use. Despite its rusted state, the key worked fine and he was able to escape.

As Shadow ran down the dark hallways, huge tremors erupted behind him. He looked to see a red mist heading in his direction. His first thought was that it was harmless and that he had nothing to worry about, but it soon dawned on him that he had that exact thought about the flesh when he first saw it. Shadow was quick to realise that this was the creature hunting him and he skated as fast as he could. Every door he flew through as if it wasn't there, until he came to one that was blocked by debris.

"Shit!" He yelled as he removed the beams and boulders before skating again. Next came two paths, one left and one right. He headed left only for a less-than-convenient rock slide to block the path, forcing him right. Then came water, which stopped his skates from working. This slowed the hedgehog significantly and the beast was soon on his tail. A few steps led him out of the water, but all he could do now was run. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him even with his now wet fur weighing him down. Suddenly, a huge staircase appeared before him with a heavy door at the top. Shadow ignored the aches in both his legs and the pain in his chest and charged through the door and into the Nave without looking back.

* * *

The door was slammed shut and Shadow relaxed a little upon not hearing the creature anymore. He slumped against the door and clutched his chest in pain. The Laudanum wasn't enough, but it was all he had as he applied another bottle. He could see a table and well in the room ahead of him, so he got to his feet and looked around. On the table lay a note and tinderbox. He picked them both up, but instantly felt light-headed. In seconds, he was unconscious again.

* * *

"_What time is it?" Shadow asked as he got comfortable in the bed._

"_3:30am" Espio replied, who was lying next to him. He could see in this vision. The room was dark, but his eyes adjusted to see the chameleon smiling back at him. This was the first time, since losing his memory, that he had laid eyes on him. He was a fuchsia chameleon, with a yellow horn and tanned muzzle. His eyes were amber in colour and provided Shadow with warmth every time he looked into them._

"_I take it we aren't sleeping?" Shadow asked. Espio chuckled._

"_I don't think so. Not after that." Shadow chuckled in return._

"_We should do something." The hedgehog suggested only causing the reptile to smirk further._

"_We did."_

"_I mean something else." He said between fits of laughter. "Let's go out somewhere."_

"_Everywhere would be closed by now, Shads." Espio reminded him._

"_Let's go to the park, or the beach, or on a road trip to see the world."_

"_You're crazy." Espio said bluntly as he moved and rested his head on Shadow's chest fur. "Besides, I'm too tired." The chameleon finished._

"_Perhaps, but at least I have someone to be crazy with." He smiled and Espio did to. The reptile then looked into his eyes and kissed him gently._

"_You know what, that road trip sounds like a good idea." He said before kissing him again._

"_You're crazy." Shadow replied with a smug grin._

"_Only with you."_

* * *

His teeth were gritted and his eyes were tightly closed, trying to hold back the pain and despair that made his body shake. One, lonesome tear managed to push through his eyelids and the others soon followed. He missed the warmth, the security, everything about having someone care about you as much as you did for them. Where did it go? Did Charmy's tragic end shake the foundations too much? Shadow laid there for a little while allowing his sorrow to finally leave him.

An unknown amount of time passed before Shadow got up and dried his eyes. His chest still stung, but that didn't stop him from trudging onward. The cries of the creature closing in soon rattled the stone walls and Shadow was quick to flee through the next few doors. He soon recognised where he was and headed for the spiral staircase, which led to Charmy.

"I hope he's alright." He panted as he ran, still holding his chest. Flesh was everywhere in the corridors now and Shadow was hit twice while running through, re-opening the gash to his leg. For now though, he tried to ignore it as he limped down.

In the next hallway, he noticed that the door to the Laboratory had been knocked down and was now open. The hedgehog struggled inside and looked around. Various bits of equipment lay on tables, but Shadow checked the note first to see how the tonic should be made. It mentioned how the vitae needed to be distilled. Shadow caught sight of a burner and placed the glass jar of blood on top before turning it on. The blood bubbled away until it changed colour altogether. After turning the burner off, Shadow looked at the note again.

The note was vague about how to get the Tampter into the tonic, so he moved onto the poison gland.

It said that the gland's contents could be extracted. A strange, wooden tool was on the left of the room. At first, Shadow had no idea what it was for. It was made of two slabs with a handle on top that would lower the top slab until it met the lower one. An idea came to mind. He placed the gland between the two slabs and put the jar underneath. The gland was crushed by the slabs, causing the poisonous substance to ooze out and into the tonic. Now all that was left was the Tampter.

Shadow had to guess as the note didn't explain it. The only piece of equipment he hadn't used was the one on the central table. There was a pipe, with one end being the outlet and the other having a compartment attached to it, where the object in question would be placed; in this case, the bone from the meat. A lever was on the side, which the hedgehog assumed would activate it. The jar was placed underneath the outlet and the bone was put inside the hollow box. He then pulled the lever and was mesmerised by the bright, green liquid that poured into the tonic, in turn, changing its entire colour. Once the liquid stopped and Shadow saw that the bone had disappeared entirely, he retrieved the jar and brought it with him as he returned to Charmy.

"Shadow! I thought I'd lost you. The castle trembled and I could hear the Chancel collapse!" He said in a panic as he heard footsteps run into the room.

"We're in a castle?" The hedgehog questioned.

"Yeah, you didn't know that?"

"No one told me." Shadow replied. "But I'm fine Charms, are you ok?"

"Despite the panic of thinking you weren't coming back, yeah, I'm good." The bee told him. "The Laboratory might be accessible now."

"It is and I've already got the tonic." Shadow announced with a smile.

"You-you… really? You did it! Shadow, you have no idea how grateful I am!" He exclaimed with as much excitement as was physically possible.

"So, you ready to drink this thing?" The mammal asked.

"Not just yet." Charmy was calmer now. "Do you have something to take my head off with?" He searched through everything he had, but nothing was good enough.

"Dammit… sorry, I don't." He could hear Charmy sigh until he noticed that the wall next to him, where the levers machinery was, had collapsed. "This wasn't open before. I'll be right back." Charmy didn't reply as Shadow climbed over the rubble.

There wasn't much, only two bookshelves and a locked door. Shadow searched high and low, only finding a bottle of Laudanum to begin with, but then by some miracle, he found what he was looking for.

"Holy shit…" He whispered. "Charmy! There's a bone saw in here!"

"Are you serious?" He yelled from where he was. "Get it over here!" Shadow grabbed the saw and vaulted over the rocks back to Charmy, forcing the pain of his injuries aside. A sudden worried expression came over the hedgehog's face knowing what was about to come.

"What if this doesn't work?"

"It will, I trust Maria and I know you do to." Charmy's words allowed a small smile, but it soon faded.

"Will we still be able to talk once I've…" He trailed off, not wanting to say it. Charmy looked down and seemed to sadden.

"No…"

"So… this is goodbye?" Shadow could feel himself welling up again, but this time forced it back for Charmy's sake.

"I guess, but it isn't truly over until I pass that gate." The bee told him.

"How do I get to it?"

"Through the Chancel. There is some machinery that you need to break first and then you can repair the emerald and get to the Inner Sanctum. Once there, you need to give some of your blood, kind of like an offering, and then stand in some strange symbol until the world shakes. Do that twice and the door to the Chaos Chamber will open."

"Seems simple enough. Then I just throw you in?"

"The gate might not be open yet. You need to be patient if it isn't." Charmy explained.

"How will I know when it's open?"

"Don't worry; you'll know it when you see it." Shadow nodded before glancing back at the jar in his hand. More loud cries startled the hedgehog. He knew that now was the time.

"Charmy…"

"I know. Everything will be fine, Dad. You have no idea how thankful I am." Hearing Charmy call him 'Dad' really hit Shadow hard. It was only now that he realised just how much he was going to miss his 'little fighter'.

"Say hi to Maria for me. I couldn't ask for a better son. I-I love you, Charmy." His voice now stuttered and Charmy's did to.

"I love you too, uncle Shadow. I'll be sure to tell her. Y-you're an awesome father." They stayed silent for a moment before the cries returned once more. "Come on, give me the tonic!" Shadow placed the jar on his lip and guided him so that he could drink it. "Now, off with my head!" Without thinking, Shadow picked up the saw and began slicing it through his neck. He cringed at the horrific sounds as his spinal cord snapped, but soon, his head was detached and lying on the floor.

"I won't lie…" The black mammal began. "…this is one of the strangest things I've ever done." Before long, Charmy's head was tucked under his arm. He then ran through the prison room and back into the Chancel, trying his best to ignore the unexplained cries that were screaming from the cells.

* * *

The Chancel still felt very unsafe, especially after Shadow's last encounter here. He eased the door open once he reached the top of the stairs and listened to screeching metal get quieter. There was something already there, but it was leaving. The hedgehog crept in to see nothing but the flesh of the monster, which had already begun to take over. Even the sight of blue fire upon the walkways seemed normal now. He moved quickly across the long walkway and went left before moving forward, remembering that he had to take care of some machinery first.

It led to two small rooms. The first, despite having more pulsating tissue, had a desk and some shelves with various machine parts piled in the corners. On the shelf was some tar, which Shadow thought could help him put the emerald pieces back together as well as a tinderbox. On the desk was a note.

'_I thought those vents lasted forever, but only for a good reason._

_They stopped and we jumped down to be face to face with a huge metal door. Espio wanted to take the stealth option, but we both knew a door this size needed more force. I told him to back up and I unleashed a Chaos Blast, knocking the door off its hinges and allowing us entrance._

_On the inside lay a sight I though neither of us would ever have to see._

_Before us was Eggman, commandeering a huge robot. Next to him was a beaten Charmy… inside an Egg Grape Chamber.'_

Shadow sniffed and wiped away a single tear before heading down the stairs where the main machinery was located. Several large cog wheels were turning on the wall. The mammal tried to punch them out of place, but instead was greeted to more open cuts on his knuckles and hand.

"Dammit!" He growled as he applied more Laudanum.

Looking around, he found a variety of items, which he thought might stop the wheels. First a hammer, which did no good, then a wooden crate, which again did nothing, and a steel crate, which seemed to cause an earthquake as the machine grinded to a halt. Shadow was nearly knocked off his feet, but held onto the wall for support.

Once things had calmed, Shadow made his way to the only room he hadn't been in yet. Not a single monster was around and the hedgehog was anxious thinking that one would show up at any moment. Nothing did and Shadow opened the door to what looked like an electrical barrier. He was fascinated, yet confused by it at the same time, knowing that electricity had not been discovered yet, but was quick to shrug it off as he was carrying his son's head after all.

He carefully put Charmy down next to a small pedestal, which was shaped exactly like the base of a Chaos Emerald.

Once he placed the first piece, he noticed that it wouldn't stay still, meaning that he couldn't easily fit the others. This was why he had the tar. He lined the inside with the thick, black substance which in turn kept the emerald pieces still, allowing him to completely repair it. Once done, he picked Charmy back up and watched as a beam of energy slowly reached for the emerald from the barrier. An enormous boom echoed throughout the Chancel as the barrier fell and, with more cries sounding behind him, Shadow ran into the Inner Sanctum.

* * *

Shadow bolted down the stairs and into a room with four pillars. On his left, he noticed a lever. The mammal pulled it down and watched as the door behind him closed, stopping the creature from following him and granting him some time to figure out what to do.

There was a room on his left and right, which were both open and a huge heavy door in front that was sealed. Shadow went left and was drawn towards another note resting on the table. He somehow knew this would be the last one he would read and took his time with it.

'_I sit here now, not knowing what to say. I want to say that we did it, that everything turned out okay and that we are happily heading home… but that would be a lie._

_After a few taunts, Eggman began attacking with bullets flying all around us. I distracted him, so that Espio could get Charmy out of the chamber before it was activated. He did so without fail, now all we had to do was deal with Eggman. He wouldn't stop firing at me; I had no idea if he had noticed that Charmy had been freed. In return, I fired Chaos Spears to at least disable him, but he then turned to the other two. I panicked and tried to get his attention by firing faster, this however, was a fatal error._

_In the heat of it all, Charmy flew up to the head of the robot where Eggman was… and where I was firing. I didn't see him at all… until it was too late. One of my spears stabbed him straight through the chest. I've never seen anyone fall like he did._

_I ran to try and catch him, but couldn't and he crashed upon the metal with blood pouring from him. I can remember holding him in my arms as he tried to comprehend what had happened to him. I cried his name and begged for his life to be spared, but a wound that serious only meant one thing._

_He passed after a few minutes of struggled breathing… I looked up to see Espio, just stood there. He was staring at Charmy, not moving at all. I called for him, hoping he would come over and cry alongside me… but he wouldn't. Instead, he pulled out the first weapon he could find, a kunai, and charged at me. I was forced to let go of Charmy and back away in a panic. He then began to scream. I had never known him so angry and upset. I cried as he yelled and so did he. It was hatred in its purest form and I deserved every bit of it._

_I sit here now watching him as he weeps endlessly over Charmy's body. I want to go over and comfort him, but I know he would only kill me._

_He hates me and for a good reason. I killed our son and in doing so, I tore us apart.'_

"No no no no no… no." Shadow mumbled repeatedly as he stared at the note in his hands. "Chaos… please tell me this is a lie. Please…" He fell to his knees and screamed in agony. Not physical agony, but sheer despair, shame and guilt that it wasn't Eggman that had done it. It was him.

None other than a fatal accident. He continued to yell in grief until his lungs were begging for air. It then went quiet with the only noise being his desperate gasping. His fist made heavy contact with the floor until it was bleeding heavily, but no Laudanum was placed on it this time. Crimson eyes met with the blind golden ones of his son's head. There was one more purpose he still had to fulfil and he was not going to let him down now. Still with tears falling, Shadow got up and approached another table to allow several drops from his red-stained fist to drip into the centre. His vision went red, but he was no longer afraid. Afterwards, he stood in the 'strange symbol' until the world shook. His vision was now heavily blurred, but he stumbled into the other room, which had the same table and symbol.

Repeating the process, Shadow then fell to the ground with a high-pitched ringing in his ears. Flesh began to form around him.

"Over… my dead body." As he forced himself onto his feet, his balance was unsteady, but he limped out of the room to see the third door had now opened. There was no chance that he could avoid the tissue in his current state, not that he wanted to. His beaten body was nearly torn apart as he tripped over and dragged himself across the floor, leaving nothing but a blood trail behind him. Once clear, he carefully got to his knees and then his feet before finally making it into the Chaos Chamber.

* * *

"I was wondering if you were going to show up and wondering if you had the nerve." A familiar deep, yet cold voice spat at him. The room was something that wasn't of this world. There were three tall pylons, each of them holding a Chaos Emerald. In the centre was where the gate was supposed to be, but it wasn't open. He had to be patient, just as Charmy had wanted him to.

"Espio…" He coughed up blood as he spoke, but ignored it. "It was an accident. I would never intentionally hurt him."

"You were careless! Eggman was your priority and because of that _you_ killed him! You!"

"I know what I did! It haunts me even now and I regret it with every waking moment, but do you really think that I didn't care for him? That it was just murder?! You are wrong!" His yelling was causing him immense pain and he was certain that it was going to be the end for him, but he kept going, no matter what happened he had to get through to Espio. He had to save him even if it meant sacrificing himself. "You and Charmy are my only family. He was my only son! _Our_ only son! Without him, I only have you and I'll be damned if I'm going to just let you suffer like this! What would Charmy have wanted? Would he have wanted to see us like this? On the verge of killing each other?" Espio stayed quiet. His face could've been made of ice with the amount of hatred in his eyes, yet he still listened, an opportunity which Shadow took full advantage of despite the agony it was causing him. "Espio, he's not in pain. He is going to be at peace and he would want us to be the same."

"How do you know that?! What gives you the right to say any of this?!" The chameleon demanded.

"I have him here." He fought the pain so that he could show him what was left of Charmy. "Once that gate opens, he will finally be able to rest. He has been trapped here, Espio. Did you know that? For centuries he has been stuck in his body, but now, he can sleep." The reptile stared at the bee, just as he did when he was killed. His expression didn't change, but Shadow could make out tears running down his scales.

"He didn't deserve this… none of it. He should be alive, living freely just like he always did."

"We can't do that." Shadow told him. "But we can give him a damn good afterlife." Their eyes locked for a moment until their attention was caught by the gate opening. The hedgehog fell to the ground and fought to get back up, but couldn't. His wounds were too painful to the point where he could barely move. "Espio!" He begged. "You have to help me… to help him!" The chameleon froze; he had no idea what to do. His emotions were all over the place as were his thoughts. "Take his head… and throw it into the gate!" He could see his vision fading. "I've… failed." He whispered, but his eyes shot open when he saw a purple and black shoe standing next to him.

"No, you haven't." Espio knelt down and picked up the head. He stared at it with watery eyes before turning to the gate. "G-goodbye Charmy." Shadow watched as the chameleon threw his head into the gate, which then closed soon after.

"Es…" The hedgehog struggled as tissue appeared behind him. Shadow could no longer move and Espio began to panic as he saw the flesh causing horrific wounds.

"Shadow!" He yelled, but the hedgehog's hearing was quickly failing him and soon, his entire world faded to darkness.

* * *

His eyelids revealed blackness. The crimsons of his irises looked around. He knew he was awake, but it felt as if he wasn't. Specs of light and a gentle mist caught his attention and he began to walk towards it. Glancing down, he could see that he still had his wounds, but they didn't hurt at all.

"There he is. Do you see him, Maria? He deserves so much more." A familiar voice filled his ears.

"Charmy?" Shadow whispered in disbelief.

"Please, help him. I know you can." Charmy continued.

"What-what's going on?"

"Don't worry, Shadow. It will be alright."


End file.
